1
as in main
coming before all others in importance
the primary concern for many house hunters is the asking price
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
as in chief
highest in rank or authority
the movie's primary screenwriter
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in preliminary
coming before the main part or item usually to introduce or prepare for what follows
a few minutes of primary instruction in the use of our diving gear before we actually got into the water
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of primary
The primary driver for this partnership is the surge in strict international mandates, such as France’s Anti-Waste Law for a Circular Economy (AGEC), the EU Deforestation Regulation, and upcoming Digital Product Passport requirements.
—
Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 9 Apr. 2026
Social relationships here clump around two primary groups, named the Central and Western clusters.
—Jason P. Dinh, Scientific American, 9 Apr. 2026
States suing Live Nation allege the company has illegally monopolized the market for primary tickets.
—Leah Nylen, Bloomberg, 9 Apr. 2026
Facilitating the collection of performance data The primary objective of the DOME is to facilitate the collection of performance data from new reactor designs.
—Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for primary
Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 9 Apr. 2026
Social relationships here clump around two primary groups, named the Central and Western clusters.
—Jason P. Dinh, Scientific American, 9 Apr. 2026
States suing Live Nation allege the company has illegally monopolized the market for primary tickets.
—Leah Nylen, Bloomberg, 9 Apr. 2026
Facilitating the collection of performance data The primary objective of the DOME is to facilitate the collection of performance data from new reactor designs.
—Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for primary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for primary
Adjective
-
Shuttle services have been arranged to transport journalists between the media center and a hotel in the city’s main shopping mall.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
-
But the leak appeared to get worse when the service module fired its main engine for the translunar injection burn on Day 2 of the flight, according to Amit Kshatriya, NASA’s associate administrator.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
And many could lose access to benefits they're legally entitled to, said consumer advocates and health policy researchers, some of them with direct experience working at state agencies.—
Sam Whitehead,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Channel that fire into direct, respectful proposals.—
Tarot.com,
New York Daily News,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
During the call, chief operating officer Dan Janki ruled out short-term concerns about jet fuel shortages.—
Glenn Taylor,
Footwear News,
14 Apr. 2026
-
Outside of the labels, Moises AI, a non-generative AI music service that provides tools for musicians (like vocal isolation and mastering) appointed Charlie Puth as its chief music officer earlier this month, with the singer serving as a consultant for the company’s creative and product direction.—
Ethan Millman,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Court records show she was arrested Tuesday and was ordered to be temporarily detained in jail ahead of a preliminary hearing on April 13.—
Jacob Rosen,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said Israel’s surprise barrage of airstrikes on Wednesday killed 303 people and wounded about 1,150 others, in a preliminary toll.—
Nabih Bulos,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
There was no immediate comment from Lebanese officials.—
Munir Ahmed,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Apr. 2026
-
One victim underwent immediate surgery for a gunshot wound to the head, police said.—
Amy McDaniel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The filmmaking team that has worked on the last nine or 10 Saw films did an extraordinary job, [and] James Wan has become one of the foremost filmmakers in that space since working on [the first] Saw.—
David Canfield,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Apr. 2026
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And of course, the foremost reason is nobody could image into the brain before, until photon microscopy became available.—
Amanda Erickson,
STAT,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The Joint Budget Committee’s half-dozen members finished their extensive preparatory work on the annual spending plan last week.—
Nick Coltrain,
Denver Post,
5 Apr. 2026
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But diplomatic protocol ahead of a presidential visit to China usually sees either the US secretary of state or the national security advisor make a preparatory trip too, and that did not happen.—
Sylvie Zhuang,
CNN Money,
21 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Warm and slightly muggy conditions will be the predominant theme for the Pirates home opener game this evening.—
Trey Fulbright,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
First, the predominant previous assessment of many pundits that Gulf states’ collective large investments in defense were prestige driven — as opposed to a necessity — has fallen flat on its face.—
Faisal J. Abbas,
semafor.com,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Primary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/primary. Accessed 15 Apr. 2026.
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