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
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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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of primitive
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
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
See All Example Sentences for primitive
Adjective
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
Noun
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
See All Example Sentences for primitive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for primitive
Adjective
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Perry’s boxing skills were far too rudimentary for Paul and he was stopped in the sixth round.—
Brian Mazique,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
-
Though being able to identify and pursue targets can make even a rudimentary swarm more dangerous, the ability to soak up the defender’s data, share that information with other drones and adjust based on what’s happening on the battlefield is far more lethal.—
Deni Ellis Béchard,
Scientific American,
16 June 2025
Adjective
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Other scholars looked to Iranian and Central Asian folklore for the meaning of the motifs, proposing that the spots and stripes might be intended to evoke the leopard and tiger skins worn by ancient warriors in those cultures.—
Dorothy Armstrong
June 18,
Literary Hub,
18 June 2025
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So, co-author Vance Holliday of the University of Arizona (who also co-authored the 2021 paper) and colleagues decided to radiocarbon-date ancient lake bed and wetlands mud that can be directly traced to the alluvium layers in which the footprints are preserved.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
18 June 2025
Adjective
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And if anyone was naive enough to imagine the U.S.-led tournament in 2026 would be free of such political baggage, then surely the increasingly public proximity of the Trump-Infantino relationship has dispelled those illusions.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
20 June 2025
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Biography Ellmann-style was left looking hopelessly naive in its effort to understand the work by understanding its writer’s life.—
Eric Bulson,
The Atlantic,
16 June 2025
Noun
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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
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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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Set five years after Jurassic World: Dominion, the movie sees an expedition brave isolated equatorial regions to extract DNA from three massive prehistoric creatures for a groundbreaking medical breakthrough.—
Baz Bamigboye,
Deadline,
18 June 2025
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Humans, therefore, are assumed to be inherently tribal because of our prehistoric ancestors.—
Dr. Rami Kaminski,
Time,
18 June 2025
Adjective
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In his formal lecture to the Academy, Campbell offered some reflections on the simple science that gave rise to the treatment, and to its wide array of applications.—
Benjamin Mazer,
The Atlantic,
17 June 2025
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The simplest way to achieve your goal may be a version of the truth that’s not the whole truth.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Chicago Tribune,
17 June 2025
Noun
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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
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He was also helped by film composer John Williams’ memorable two-note motif in the Jaws soundtrack that fed into primal fears about unseen predators being afoot and approaching.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
20 June 2025
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Two simple notes – E and F – have become synonymous with tension, fear and sharks, representing the primal dread of being stalked by a predator.—
Jared Bahir Browsh,
The Conversation,
18 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Primitive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/primitive. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.
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