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
The invisible force is a powerful, primal motivator.
—
Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 6 Mar. 2025
There’s a simple yet primal excitement for taking down beasts that resemble dragons and dinosaurs, which coexist with wildly distinct creatures outside the usual role-playing norms, such as the puffy bat-like Paolumu that floats in the air like a balloon.
—Diego Argüello, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2025
Adria had a primal, violent feeling of losing her place, falling away from the course.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 17 Feb. 2025
Our thoughts untangle against its glow, lose the constraints of language, become primal.
—Murr Brewster, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for primal
Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 6 Mar. 2025
There’s a simple yet primal excitement for taking down beasts that resemble dragons and dinosaurs, which coexist with wildly distinct creatures outside the usual role-playing norms, such as the puffy bat-like Paolumu that floats in the air like a balloon.
—Diego Argüello, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2025
Adria had a primal, violent feeling of losing her place, falling away from the course.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 17 Feb. 2025
Our thoughts untangle against its glow, lose the constraints of language, become primal.
—Murr Brewster, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for primal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for primal
Adjective
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The 9a's main camera takes 12MP images thanks to pixel binning, and the resulting shots are nearly identical to the Pixel 9 Pro's.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
10 Apr. 2025
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Approach with caution, look at reviews, and maybe don’t use your main credit card (or at least keep your bank’s dispute line handy).—
Francesca Krempa,
StyleCaster,
10 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The company decided on the dire wolf for two main reasons: their ancient DNA was available, and they can safely be born using a surrogate.—
Andrea Marks,
Rolling Stone,
7 Apr. 2025
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The gray wolves share physical features with dire wolves but remain genetically and behaviorally distinct due to the limits of current technology and incomplete ancient DNA.—
John W. Dean,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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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
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Many are primitive and remote, and don’t have restrooms or water.—
OregonLive.com,
OregonLive.com,
12 July 2017
Adjective
-
Algeria’s western neighbor and primary rival, Morocco, also received its first batch of Akinci drones in February 2025.—
Paul Iddon,
Forbes.com,
6 Apr. 2025
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As the cool new kid in town, his Tommy Oliver was transformed into one of the core team of rangers' (Amy Jo Johnson, David Yost, Austin St. John, Walter Emanuel Jones, and Thuy Trang) primary adversaries: the fearsome Green Ranger.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
6 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The little mountain park lay almost at our feet, a gem of unspoiled primeval beauty.—
Percy Brown,
Outdoor Life,
26 Mar. 2025
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About three hours from the capital city of Quito, Ecuador, the cloud forest feels primeval and otherworldly.—
Greg Iacurci,
CNBC,
1 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
To get around that, the scientists first tap into the fertilized egg of a pink pigeon and extract what are known as primordial germ cells (PGCs)—the cells that eventually become sperm and egg.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
7 Apr. 2025
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My body, equipped with the primordial fear of starvation, was a formidable foe.—
Emma Pattee,
Glamour,
25 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The policies announced so far in Trump's current term are on track to push the average tariff to 22.5%, per the Yale Budget Lab. Flashback: From the colonial era through the early 1900s, tariffs were the predominant source of the federal government's revenue.—
Neil Irwin,
Axios,
5 Apr. 2025
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During oral arguments, Louisiana and its backers sought to argue that there was a difference between considering race when creating the congressional maps versus viewing race as the predominant factor.—
Zach Schonfeld,
The Hill,
24 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Catalogs of data like mine abound in Netflix viewing histories, prehistoric Facebook posts, and, now, dialogues with ChatGPT—imprints of the way the web informs and commoditizes work and friendship, sorrow and joy.—
Matteo Wong,
The Atlantic,
10 Apr. 2025
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Every year, more than one million tourists and Southern California locals stream through the La Brea Tar Pits and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, taking in prehistoric fossils and centuries-old artifacts.—
Katie Kilkenny,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Primal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/primal. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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