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# primary

«primary» in Mova's school dictionary: **first in importance; main** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

adjective (primary); noun (a primary, primaries — mainly US: a vote to choose a party's candidate)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Primary means first in importance; main. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#m1)

2) Primary means first in order or time. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#m2)

3) A primary school is the first school children go to, for about ages five to eleven. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#m3)

4) The primary colours are the colours that can be mixed to make many others. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#m4)

### sense in the lessons

School: primary school (UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand; in the USA «elementary school»). Art: in painting, the primary colours are red, yellow and blue; in light (screens) they are red, green and blue. Science and history: a primary source is a first-hand record from the time, like a letter or diary. Phrases: primary school, primary colours, primary source, of primary importance.

### examples

- My little brother started primary school this term. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#x1)
- Red, yellow and blue are the primary colours in painting. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#x2)
- Mix two primary colours to make a secondary colour. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#x3)
- Our primary aim is to keep everyone safe. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#x4)
- A diary from the war is a primary source. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#x5)
- Grass is a primary food for cows. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/#x6)

### note

Not usually compared («more primary» is rare). Spelling: prim-ary. «Primary colours» in paint and in light are different sets — a common trap. Related: primarily (mainly).

### In the corpora

- [A book band is a colour level used in many UK primary schools to match early reading books to a child's reading.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/16-reading-for-pleasure-and-the-reading-book-at-home/21/)
- [By the end of primary school, pupils are expected to edit their own work without being told each mistake.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/english/43-editing-and-redrafting/14/)
- [Luckily his primary head also wrote that Jake had improved a lot.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/375-what-fights-cost-at-school/4/)
- [Friendships at primary school change a lot as children grow, and that is normal, not a failure.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/464-growing-apart/38/)
- [In England the school curriculum says children should be able to swim at least 25 metres by the end of primary school.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/medicine/42-swimming-and-cycling/8/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «primary» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/P/primary/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.