Prime

How to spell prime

5 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce prime

What does prime mean?

1. adjectiveOf the highest quality, or first in importance.
2. verbTo make something ready for use, such as coating a surface before painting or filling a pump with liquid.
3. nounThe period of greatest strength, success, or vigour in someone's life or career.
4. nounA whole number greater than one that can be divided evenly only by itself and one.

Prime in a sentence

• adjective

  The shop sells prime cuts of beef at a premium.

• verb

  You should prime the bare wood before applying the topcoat.

• noun

  The athlete won three titles in her prime.

• noun

  The number seven is a prime because nothing else divides it cleanly.

• adjective

  The office sits in a prime location near the station.

• verb

  The staff will prime the new recruits with a short briefing.

Where does prime come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word descends from the Latin primus, which simply meant 'first', the same root that gives us 'primary', 'primitive', and 'premier'. Old English borrowed an early form to name the first canonical hour of prayer, called prime, marking the beginning of the day. Through Old French the broader Latin sense of 'first in order or rank' reached English, and by the medieval period 'prime' had come to suggest not just first in sequence but first in quality, the very best. From there the meanings branched widely: the peak of life, the act of making something ready for first use (priming a pump or a wall), and the mathematical idea of a number divisible only by itself and one. Because the word is built straight on primus, the spelling stays reassuringly regular, ending in a silent -e that lengthens the vowel.

How the word is built

• prim- (from Latin primus: first)
• -e