primal

adjective

ˈprī-məl How to pronounce primal (audio)
Definition of primalnext
1
as in main
coming before all others in importance the primal theme of the essay is toleration of religious diversity

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 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

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of primal For me, slasher films at their very essence are simple and primal. — William Earl, Variety, 10 Sep. 2026 Cynically or not, Chin and Vasarhelyi understand that these primal thrills are enough to distract us from the frustrating and sorrowful truth at the center of the story. — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2026 Animals could offer liberatory models to throw off bourgeois conventions, returning Surrealists to primal ways of being. — Kelly Presutti, ARTnews.com, 28 Aug. 2026 Every single song was a pile driver to the head, feeding that primal pleasure of a meaty guitar riff over a heavy drum beat and Johnson’s gritty falsetto. — Rodney Ho, AJC.com, 28 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for primal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for primal
  1. main
  2. ancient
  3. primary
  4. primitive
  5. predominant
  6. primeval
  7. dominant
  8. primordial
Adjective
  • Homegrown chip design firm SkyeChip also enjoyed a blockbuster IPO on the Bursa Malaysia stock exchange in May, surging 300% on its main market debut.
    — Angelica Ang, Fortune, 5 Oct. 2026
  • AbdulSalam Mohammed, president of the Abaad Studies & Research Center and an adviser to Yemen’s Information Ministry, told the Washington Examiner that government forces are currently focused on defending against the Houthis along three main axes.
    — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of main
Adjective
  • Our research is already leading in new directions beyond ancient interiors.
    — Jacqueline Ortoleva, Scientific American, 3 Oct. 2026
  • For scientists, the harder question has been how oxygen stayed abundant for millions of years afterward — long enough, as ancient rocks suggest, to set the stage for the emergence of increasingly complex life.
    — Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of ancient
Adjective
  • The war crimes that were brought to the fore on the stage by Macklemore’s speech are the ones that should be the primary focus.
    — Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Simmons made some phenomenal throws all over the field, including to his primary receiver, Cayden Lee.
    — PJ Green, Kansas City Star, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of primary
Adjective
  • Prince figured out how to make primitive-sounding electronics feel human.
    — Kristin Robinson, Billboard, 30 Sep. 2026
  • They’re rooted in a time and place that feels all too real, and this allows the monsters to parade their primitive might in a way that means something.
    — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of primitive
Adjective
  • The predominant suites—all of which have generous outdoor space—are spread across four buildings whose Indonesian names translate to mountain, hill, plateau and valley.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Through the year 2027, architecture convergence will remain predominant, meaning centralized computing, zonal designs, maturing OTA functionality, shareable and reusable software platforms and stronger hardware/software modularity.
    — Rajjie Sarmey, Forbes.com, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of predominant
Adjective
  • The work required felling primeval trees measuring six feet in diameter and digging a deep trench through the marsh to accommodate boat traffic.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Apr. 2026
  • Yeti takes place deep in the Alps, where an avalanche has unleashed something primeval from the glacial ice.
    — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 6 Mar. 2026
Definition of primeval
Adjective
  • One is reminded of Toni Morrison, whose refusal to pander to the dominant gaze — whose insistence on writing about Black characters without regard for whoever else might be reading — unlocked its own kind of universality.
    — Sam Worley, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
  • However, the iMac's M4 chip performed better in both single-core contests (representative of the most basic tasks) and Adobe Photoshop, where Macs have been dominant for years.
    — Michael Justin Allen Sexton, PC Magazine, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of dominant
Adjective
  • This would have been a primordial black hole (PBH), a hypothesized object formed in the universe’s earliest moments.
    — Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 2 Oct. 2026
  • So evolving from the ocean to the land, just like any primordial creature would.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of primordial

Browse Nearby Words

prima facie
primal
primarily
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Primal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/primal. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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