Meanings
primage1
plural primages
- archaiccountableuncountableA payment made for loading or unloading a ship, or for care of goods during transit by ship.
By the bill of lading the maſter undertakes to deliver the goods on payment of freight with primage and average accuſtomed.
1818, John Adolphus, The Political State of the British Empire, volume 3, page 197 - AustraliaNew ZealandcountableuncountableAn additional import duty levied by customs.
1932, E. T. McPhee (Commonwealth Statistician), Official Year Book of the Commonwealth of Australia: No. 25 - 1932, The rate of primage duty was subsequently increased to 4 per cent. as from the 6th November, 1930.
primage2
plural primages
- countablerareuncountableengineeringDroplets of water suspended in steam (especially in the cylinder of a steam engine).
Of these temperatures, only one, the second, indicates primage; all others exhibit a slight superheat.
1883, Emory Edwards, Modern American Locomotive Engines: Their Design, Construction and Management, page 75
Origin
primage · noun
- Late Latinprimagium
- Englishprimage
From Late Latin primagium. (The French word post-dates the English.)
More words from Late Latin
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
primage. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/primage
“primage.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/primage. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “primage,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/primage.
Source: primage on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.