primacy

What it means

1. uncountableusuallyThe state or condition of being prime or first, as in time, place, rank, preference etc.

   assert primacy

   5 more examples

   establish the primacy of something

   acknowledge the primacy of something

   The court affirmed the primacy of federal law.

   He argued for the primacy of reason over emotion.

   I am reading Nick Sousanis’ PhD dissertation-as-a-comic Unflattening. It debunks the primacy of word over image in Western culture and suggests that the two are equal partners in meaning-making.

   December 25 2016, Amruta Patil, “The book in my hand”, in The Hindu

   Synonyms: preeminence

2. archaicuncountableusuallyExcellence; supremacy.
3. uncountableusuallyChristianityThe office, rank, or character of a primate (chief ecclesiastical dignity in a church).

   Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, who holds a primacy of honor in Eastern Orthodoxy, emphasized the many areas of agreement between Pope Francis and himself in response to the social concerns of the day.

   December 2 2016, Ecumenical Patriarch points to areas of agreement with Pope, Catholic World News

In a sentence

establish the primacy of something

Where it comes from

1. Latinprimas
2. Medieval Latinprimatia“office of a church primate”
3. Old Frenchprimacie
4. Englishprimacy

From Old French primacie, from Medieval Latin primatia (“office of a church primate”), from Latin primas plus a suffix corresponding to -acy. By surface analysis, prime + -acy.