1
as in rudimentary
belonging to or characteristic of an early level of skill or development
primitive wooden tools were used before the Iron Age
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ancient
relating to or occurring near the beginning of a process, series, or time period
a primitive period in church history when members still lived in communes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in naive
lacking in worldly wisdom or informed judgment
her taste in art was still primitive, but she knew schlock when she saw it
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in barbarian
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of primitive
EW.com, 2 Nov. 2023
By identifying and then chaining together a series of motion primitives, the Amazon researchers have been able to achieve stowing success rates (in the lab) of better than 90 percent.
—IEEE Spectrum, 22 Feb. 2023
Mike Giuliano, Howard County Times, 23 June 2017
A lot of the campgrounds are primitive, and lack some common amenities - including water.
—Jamie Hale, OregonLive.com, 6 July 2017
See All Example Sentences for primitive
Adjective
Meanwhile, humans have regressed into being primitives that the apes hunt for sport, or feed out of pity from beside their campfire.
—EW.com, 2 Nov. 2023
By identifying and then chaining together a series of motion primitives, the Amazon researchers have been able to achieve stowing success rates (in the lab) of better than 90 percent.
—IEEE Spectrum, 22 Feb. 2023
Noun
Constructed in front of the stone ruins of the Patapsco Female Institute Historic Park in Ellicott City, that caveman-evocative set provides a suitably primitive stomping ground for the monstrous Caliban.
—Mike Giuliano, Howard County Times, 23 June 2017
A lot of the campgrounds are primitive, and lack some common amenities - including water.
—Jamie Hale, OregonLive.com, 6 July 2017
See All Example Sentences for primitive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for primitive
Adjective
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Unlike the predictable drawers that pull out, this style slides out to the side, so pulling out paper clips feels more like an event than a rudimentary task.—
Yelena Moroz Alpert,
Architectural Digest,
30 June 2025
-
Chávez even lost in 2021 to Anderson Silva, the former UFC champion and rudimentary boxer who lost a one-sided ring decision to Paul one year later.—
Greg Beacham,
Los Angeles Times,
29 June 2025
Adjective
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As an ancient threat emerges, endangering both Vikings and dragons, Hiccup’s friendship with Toothless becomes the key to forging a new future.—
Tim Lammers,
Forbes.com,
12 July 2025
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Spanning about 30 hectares (74 ac), this ancient landscape has been under the microscope since the 1980s, thanks to pioneering archaeologist Dietrich Mania.—
Pranjal Malewar,
New Atlas,
12 July 2025
Adjective
-
Modern takes on the tankini and boy short offer nostalgia without being too naive and are also seen from Candice Swaenpoel’s Topic of C line or Hunza G’s colorful styles.—
Emily Mercer,
Footwear News,
27 June 2025
-
Yet such arguments are either geopolitically naive or disingenuous.—
Charles Kupchan,
Foreign Affairs,
20 June 2025
Noun
-
Once, some 2,000 years ago, so many such personages (then known as barbarians) came to Paris simultaneously that the city was destroyed.—
Caity Weaver,
The Atlantic,
5 June 2025
-
This new Leo is poised to save America’s democracy from American barbarians within, seeking to destroy centuries of democratic compromise toward a more perfect union.—
Emmett Coyne,
The Hill,
23 May 2025
Adjective
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Overall, the graves have slowly revealed new clues about the prehistoric society that lived in the region thousands of years ago.—
Sonja Anderson,
Smithsonian Magazine,
30 June 2025
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Director Gareth Edwards and screenwriter David Koepp give EW the inside scoop on creating these prehistoric monsters.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
30 June 2025
Adjective
-
These patterns are muted, simple, and still full of personality, like this pillow cover in indigo which looks exactly suited to a couch in a captain’s quarters, yacht-appropriate, or like a great porch nap pillow along a white rattan sofa.—
Julia Harrison,
Architectural Digest,
11 July 2025
-
Taxes are never simple, nor quick to fix, but need to be top of mind during crypto week.—
Sean Stein Smith,
Forbes.com,
11 July 2025
Noun
-
Often regarded by historians as a collection of savage tribes, the Scythians emerge as a pivotal force of the ancient world in this monumental history.—
The New Yorker,
The New Yorker,
30 Jan. 2023
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Nearly 32 years ago, Rodney King’s savage beating by police in Los Angeles prompted heartfelt calls for change.—
Aaron Morrison, Claudia Lauer and Adrian Sainz,
Anchorage Daily News,
29 Jan. 2023
Adjective
-
Restoring the moa would not bring the eagle back but could help at least partly restore the primal New Zealand woodlands.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
8 July 2025
-
In this book, scientist Coltan Scrivner acknowledges this most gruesome urge, and provides evidence that it is connected to deep and primal survival instincts.—
Literary Hub
July 1,
Literary Hub,
1 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Primitive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/primitive. Accessed 15 Jul. 2025.
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