1
as in main
coming before all others in importance
the primal theme of the essay is toleration of religious diversity
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ancient
relating to or occurring near the beginning of a process, series, or time period
there was a period of primal idealism after the founding of the republic and before the rise of partisan politics
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of primal
Trumpism is about ego, appetite and acquisitiveness and is driven by a primal aversion to the higher elements of the human spirit — learning, compassion, scientific wonder, the pursuit of justice.
—
David Brooks, Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2025
On This Week’s Episode: Stories of people confronted with stealing, lying, killing and more of those old, primal rules of life.
—New York Times, 21 Apr. 2025
Undergirding the performance’s raw, primal energy was choreography by Parris Goebel, the artist, dancer, and all-around creative force.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 18 Apr. 2025
There’s something about the night sounds and waking up to dewdrops on the grass that really just scratches a primal itch.
—Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 17 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for primal
David Brooks, Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2025
On This Week’s Episode: Stories of people confronted with stealing, lying, killing and more of those old, primal rules of life.
—New York Times, 21 Apr. 2025
Undergirding the performance’s raw, primal energy was choreography by Parris Goebel, the artist, dancer, and all-around creative force.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 18 Apr. 2025
There’s something about the night sounds and waking up to dewdrops on the grass that really just scratches a primal itch.
—Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 17 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for primal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for primal
Adjective
-
Today, the city’s main protection against high tides is the MOSE set of flood barriers that rises from the seabed to cut off the lagoon from the Adriatic during exceptionally high tides.—
Julia Buckley,
CNN Money,
4 May 2025
-
This means cruise visitors will need to rely on shuttle buses, taxis, or sightseeing tours to reach the city’s main attractions.—
David Nikel,
Forbes.com,
4 May 2025
Adjective
-
The photo highlights the relative youth of human civilization by showing a 2,500-year-old temple that is ancient by the yardstick of human lives, alongside the 4.5 billion-year-old disk of Earth's moon, which has watched over humanity since our ancestors emerged from the oceans.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
13 May 2025
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Drive around the island and catch glimpses of past civilizations: ancient fig trees propped up by wooden crutches; centuries-old windmills that look like giant antique flyswatters; stone walls built by the Moors during the Middle Ages that somehow still look new.—
Julia Chaplin,
Travel + Leisure,
13 May 2025
Adjective
-
Houde said these mammoth animals are a primitive group of proboscideans ('elephantoids') from which modern elephants evolved.—
Joseph J. Kolb,
Fox News,
18 July 2017
-
Many are primitive and remote, and don’t have restrooms or water.—
OregonLive.com,
OregonLive.com,
12 July 2017
Adjective
-
Arriving first responders conducted a primary assessment of the scene and learned that two people were trapped in a Toyota Corolla, officials said.—
Staff report,
Hartford Courant,
13 May 2025
-
It's led by a 200-megapixel primary camera and a 12-megapixel ultrawide, with a 12-megapixel selfie camera.—
Julian Chokkattu,
Wired News,
13 May 2025
Adjective
-
Los Angeles, like the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and the Santa Monica Mountains, will never return to its primeval state.—
Edward Ring,
Oc Register,
22 Apr. 2025
-
Six secluded individual bungalows sit behind a network of thriving greenery meant to evoke Miyakojima’s inland primeval forests.—
Kristin Braswell,
Travel + Leisure,
15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
So the cosmic dark ages aren’t entirely dark; those clouds of primordial neutral hydrogen are emitting tremendous amounts of 21-cm radiation.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
16 Apr. 2025
-
George Harrison may be thought of as a holy man, but the primordial ooze his career emerges from is made of cars.—
Kaleb Horton,
Rolling Stone,
2 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The soda business grew in popularity in a predominant Mormon area, according to the New York Times, as the church prohibits drinks that are hot caffeinated like tea and coffee.—
Gabe Hauari,
USA Today,
15 May 2025
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While Putin’s predominant image in the outside world is that of a ruthless strongman, for domestic audiences the Kremlin has tried to soften this image.—
Peter Rutland,
The Conversation,
9 May 2025
Adjective
-
The existence of any prehistoric apex predators in the islands of the Caribbean used to be doubted.—
Ashley Belanger – May 16,
ArsTechnica,
16 May 2025
-
The original show gave the prehistoric reptiles the nature documentary treatment, offering glimpses of a world that was ruled by dinosaurs millions of years ago through the magic of CGI and animatronics.—
Maira Garcia,
Los Angeles Times,
15 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Primal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/primal. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
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