Primer

How to spell primer

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce primer

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does primer mean?

1. nounA preparatory coat of paint or sealant applied to a surface before the final coat.
2. nounAn elementary textbook or short introduction to a subject.
3. nounA small cap or charge that ignites the main propellant in a cartridge or explosive.

Primer in a sentence

• The decorator brushed a coat of primer onto the bare plaster before painting.

• The manual reads like a primer for anyone new to project management.

• The cartridge failed to fire because the primer was faulty.

• Bare metal needs a rust-resistant primer to stop the paint flaking later.

• He wrote a short primer on personal finance for first-time investors.

• A sharp strike on the primer sets off the main charge.

Where does primer come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes from the Latin primus, meaning 'first', the same root that gives us 'primary', 'prime', and 'premier'. In medieval England a 'primer' was originally a small prayer book, a layperson's first book of devotions, and because such books were often used to teach reading, the word drifted toward the idea of an elementary first textbook. From that core notion of 'the first thing applied' the sense branched out: in painting a primer is the first coat that prepares a surface, and in firearms a primer is the small charge that fires first to ignite the main one. English has used the word since the 1300s, and across all these senses the unifying thread is the Latin 'first', which is also why the spelling keeps the single -m- of prim rather than doubling it.

How the word is built

• prim- (from Latin primus: first)
• -er (agent/noun suffix)