primarily

P3R1I1M3A1R1I1L1Y4
UK, traditional/ˈpɹaɪ.mə.ɹə.li/UK, common/pɹaɪˈmɛɹ.əli/Canada, US/ˈpɹaɪ.mɛɹ.ə.li/Australia/ˈpɹɑe.mə.ɹɪ.li/

adverb

Of a primary or central nature, first and foremost.

Opposite
CommonScrabble 16

Meanings

adverbprimarily (not comparable)
  1. focusnot comparableOf a primary or central nature, first and foremost.

    Some Gold Cups are won primarily with class, others with stamina.

    2019 March 15, Keith Melrose, “Our leading tipsters give their fancy for the Cheltenham Gold Cup”, in The Racing Post, archived from the original on 22 Sep 2024
    4 more examples

    The idea of fitting a crane to an engine for shunting duties, primarily in works yards, appears to have originated with the North London Railway engine in 1872.

    1951 October, H. C. Casserley, “Crane Engines”, in Railway Magazine, page 660

    These spectacles aren't calls for a Hobbesian war of all against all by some insurgent movement that, however dangerous, would have First Amendment protection. They're driven primarily by institutions that we as sovereign citizens created to serve our purposes.

    2013 January 25, Jim Sleeper, Daniel J. H. Greenwood, “To Stop Gun Violence, We Need to Remember We Can Regulate Corporate Speech and Advertising”, in The Atlantic, archived from the original on 08 Jul 2014

    But now a study has shown that most cancers are primarily caused by bad luck rather than poor lifestyle choices or defective DNA.

    2015 January 1, Sarah Knapton, “Most cancers are caused by bad luck not genes or lifestyle, say scientists”, in The Telegraph, archived from the original on 30 Aug 2015

    Zika virus disease is caused by a virus transmitted primarily by Aedes mosquitoes, which bite during the day.

    2018 July 20, “Zika virus”, in World Health Organization, archived from the original on 17 Apr 2019

    Synonyms: by and large, chiefly, for the most part, above all

Synonyms & antonyms

adverbOf a primary or central nature, first and foremost.

More synonyms by meaning

adverbfor the most part

adverbof primary import

Opposite

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

Translations

Bulgarian главно, преди всичко
  • главно (glavno)of a primary or central nature
  • преди всичко (predi vsičko)of a primary or central nature
Catalan primàriament
  • primàriamentof a primary or central nature
Finnish pääasiassa, ensisijaisesti
  • pääasiassaof a primary or central nature
  • ensisijaisestiof a primary or central nature
  • ennen muutaof a primary or central nature
  • ennen kaikkeaof a primary or central nature
French principalement, essentiellement
  • principalementof a primary or central nature
  • essentiellementof a primary or central nature
  • surtoutof a primary or central nature
German hauptsächlich, in erster Linie
  • hauptsächlichof a primary or central nature
  • in erster Linieof a primary or central nature
Hungarian főként, elsősorban
  • főkéntof a primary or central nature
  • elsősorbanof a primary or central nature
Icelandic aðallega, fyrst og fremst
  • aðallegaof a primary or central nature
  • fyrst og fremstof a primary or central nature
Italian principalmente, fondamentalmente
  • principalmenteof a primary or central nature
  • fondamentalmenteof a primary or central nature
  • primariamenteof a primary or central nature
Norwegian Bokmål primært
  • primærtof a primary or central nature
Romanian în primul rând, înainte de toate
  • în primul rândof a primary or central nature
  • înainte de toateof a primary or central nature
  • în principalof a primary or central nature
Russian гла́вным о́бразом
  • гла́вным о́бразом (glávnym óbrazom)of a primary or central nature
Spanish primariamente
  • primariamenteof a primary or central nature
Ukrainian переважно, головно
  • переважно (perevažno)of a primary or central nature
  • головно (holovno)of a primary or central nature
Cite this entry
APA

primarily. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/primarily

MLA

“primarily.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/primarily. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “primarily,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/primarily.

Source: primarily on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.