primal

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primal

/ˈpɹaɪməl/

Rhymes with -aɪməl

Where it comes from

Probably partly from Medieval Latin prīmālis, from Latin prīmus (“first”) + -ālis, and partly from prime + -al.

adjective

not comparable Being the first in time or in history. primal man
Similar: aboriginal, primaeval, primeval, primordial
not comparable Of greatest importance; primary. The most primal motion of all, of course, is vertical—a steady eternal fall into the infinity of space; speed cannot be ascribed to them, since, given the infinity of space and the absolute steadiness of the fall, no [relative] standard for it exists at all.
Similar: primary
not comparable Being one of the pieces of meat initially separated from the carcass during butchering, prior to division into smaller cuts.

noun primals

A primal cut (of meat).
The first element of something, especially the first letter of a word. DOUBLE ACROSTIC. My primals and finals are the same as the first crossword.

verb primals · primaling · primalling · primaled · primalled

intransitive To take part in primal therapy. One of my patients told me of an acquaintance who primaled in the shopping center. Janov described a patient who primaled on the tennis court. Apparently, once initiated, patients primal in any place at any time for the rest of their lives.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: primeval, primaeval, primordial, aboriginal, fundamental, cardinal, important, early, central, key, of import, primitive, elementary, primary, main, piece

Translations

Every language

adj Being the first in time, or history

Español	primigenio
Русский	перви́чный pervíčnyj, изнача́льный iznačálʹnyj

adj Being of greatest importance; primary

Español	primordial

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MLA

"primal." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/primal. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

primal. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/primal

Chicago

"primal." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/primal.

BibTeX

@misc{primal_2026,
  title = {primal},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/primal},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}