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
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
To accomplish that, the farmers had to persuade their clients to embrace a new aesthetic: less polished and more primal, twining and frondy, founded on blossoms that might be too lush and soft to endure weeks of refrigerated storage but could be guaranteed to look and smell like nothing else.
—
Maryn McKenna, Scientific American, 13 Feb. 2025
But my wife, a native Californian, sensed something more innately — some primal signal in her neurons screaming: Danger.
—Josh Eells, Rolling Stone, 13 Feb. 2025
There’s the raw, primal nature of man vs man — that part is most definitely accurate, and easy to play out as mythic.
—Bob Guccione Jr., SPIN, 11 Feb. 2025
The pair watched each other so as not to overstep on a beat and engaged in a stylistic showdown mid-song – Copeland’s jazzier style teamed with Fleetwood’s more primal thumping – as the quartet made joyful noise.
—Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY, 1 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for primal
Maryn McKenna, Scientific American, 13 Feb. 2025
But my wife, a native Californian, sensed something more innately — some primal signal in her neurons screaming: Danger.
—Josh Eells, Rolling Stone, 13 Feb. 2025
There’s the raw, primal nature of man vs man — that part is most definitely accurate, and easy to play out as mythic.
—Bob Guccione Jr., SPIN, 11 Feb. 2025
The pair watched each other so as not to overstep on a beat and engaged in a stylistic showdown mid-song – Copeland’s jazzier style teamed with Fleetwood’s more primal thumping – as the quartet made joyful noise.
—Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY, 1 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for primal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for primal
Adjective
-
My one and only visit was decades ago, in middle school, when my main priority was riding the roller coaster.—
Mariah Tyler,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Mar. 2025
-
In addition to a cozy and updated three-bedroom, 1,600-square-foot main home, there’s a small 19th-century cabin with a rock chimney still standing on the property.—
David Caraccio,
Sacramento Bee,
8 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Those obsessed with history will want to immerse themselves in the historic district where there’s still a square moat and remnants of ancient walls, as well as over 300 Buddhist temples scattered throughout the entire city.—
Nicole Kliest,
Vogue,
2 Mar. 2025
-
Blue Ghost’s suite of science equipment The mission is aiming to land near an ancient volcanic feature called Mons Latreille, which lies on the far eastern edge of the moon’s visible face just north of the equator.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN,
1 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
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
-
Many are primitive and remote, and don’t have restrooms or water.—
OregonLive.com,
OregonLive.com,
12 July 2017
Adjective
-
The interface consists of selecting a primary tool and then a contextual menu at the bottom of the screen with the options for that tool.—
Julian Chokkattu,
WIRED,
1 Mar. 2025
-
The money could give him a significant edge with just four months to go until the primary election.—
Gloria Pazmino,
CNN,
1 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The work recalls a kind of primeval decadence, in the best sense of that word.—
R. Daniel Foster,
Forbes,
26 Feb. 2025
-
These places maintain the largest amount of intact primeval forest and the highest populations of bears, wolves and lynx in all of Europe.—
Jamie Lang,
Variety,
26 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The researchers simulated early Earth and how its primordial environment affected the color of the planet’s oceans.—
David Bressan,
Forbes,
22 Feb. 2025
-
This residual internal energy can warm the base of the atmosphere as the planet cools, lifting up the primordial envelope from below and helping gas to escape, along with the pull from stellar radiation.—
Dakotah Tyler,
Scientific American,
18 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Here’s how Stein went from making muffin mixes in her New York apartment’s kitchen to building one of the country’s predominant granola brands.—
Ryan Johnston,Zachary Green,
CNBC,
28 Feb. 2025
-
The predominant tone in the conspiracy films of the 1970s is futility.—
Chris Vognar,
New York Times,
24 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The prehistoric markings were found in White Sands National Park by a team from Bournemouth University.—
Tessa Solomon for ARTnews,
Robb Report,
5 Mar. 2025
-
Inside the Jardin des Tuileries and in time to Robert Wilson’s choreography, models walked beneath a prehistoric flying bird and enormous boulders descended from the ceiling, over hot lava projected onto the ground, and around icebergs emerging from the floor.—
Arden Fanning Andrews,
Vogue,
4 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Primal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/primal. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share