prime
adjective · noun · verb
Simple meaning
First in importance, degree.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
prymIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈpɹaɪm
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
First in importance, degree, or rank.
First in time, order, or sequence.
First in excellence, quality, or value.
Early; blooming; being in the first stage.
Marked or distinguished by the prime symbol.
noun
Something which is first in importance or rank: a prime defense company, mortgage lender, etc.
The most active, thriving, or successful stage or period.
An inch, as composed of twelve seconds in the duodecimal system.
The chief or best individual or part.
A feather, from the wing of the cock ostrich, that is of the palest possible shade.
verb
intransitive
To serve as priming for the charge of a gun.
transitive
To fill or prepare the chamber of a mechanism for its main work.
To prepare; to make ready.
Fill with priming liquid
To apply priming to (a musket or cannon); to apply a primer to (a metallic cartridge).
intransitiveof a steam boiler
To work so that foaming occurs from too violent ebullition, which causes water to become mixed with, and be carried along with, the steam that is formed.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: First in importance, degree, or rank.
Used this way, prime is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It suits considered writing and prepared speech.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Serious and weighty
- Usage feel
- Formal and precise
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use prime
- “This is a prime example of good customer service.”adjective
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.