primitive

/'primitiv/

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Explanation of the Word "Primitive"

Definition:
The word "primitive" is an adjective that describes something that is very simple and basic or comes from an early stage of development. It can refer to art, societies, or even tools that are not advanced or complex.

Examples:

1. Art: "Grandma Moses is known for her primitive art, which is colorful and striking."
2. Society: "Primitive societies often rely on hunting and gathering for food."
3. Tools: "Early humans used primitive tools made of stone and wood."

Advanced Usage:

In more advanced contexts, "primitive" can also refer to something that serves as a basic form from which other things develop. For instance, in mathematics, a "primitive" expression is one that forms the basis for other expressions.

Word Variants:

1. Noun: "Primitive" can also be used as a noun to refer to a person from an early stage of civilization or a basic form of something. For example, "The archaeologist studied the primitives of the ancient culture."
2. Adverb: "Primarily" can be used when discussing something that is mainly or chiefly primitive in nature.

Different Meanings:

• In Art: Refers to styles that are simple and often created by artists without formal training.
• In Anthropology: Refers to societies that have not developed advanced technology or social structures.

Synonyms:

• Basic
• Simple
• Unrefined
• Crude
• Early

Idioms and Phrasal Verbs:

While there aren't specific idioms or phrasal verbs that include "primitive," you might encounter phrases like "primitive instincts," which refers to basic, instinctual behaviors that are not influenced by societal norms.

Summary:

"Primitive" is used to describe things that are simple, basic, or from an early stage of development. It can refer to art, societies, tools, or even expressions in mathematics.

Academic

Adjective

1. of or created by one without formal training; simple or naive in style
   • primitive art such as that by Grandma Moses is often colorful and striking
2. used of preliterate or tribal or nonindustrial societies
   • primitive societies
3. little evolved from or characteristic of an earlier ancestral type
   • archaic forms of life
   • primitive mammals
   • the okapi is a short-necked primitive cousin of the giraffe
4. belonging to an early stage of technical development; characterized by simplicity and (often) crudeness
   • the crude weapons and rude agricultural implements of early man
   • primitive movies of the 1890s
   • primitive living conditions in the Appalachian mountains

Noun

1. a word serving as the basis for inflected or derived forms
   • `pick' is the primitive from which `picket' is derived
2. a mathematical expression from which another expression is derived
3. a person who belongs to an early stage of civilization

Synonyms

• naive
• archaic
• crude
• rude
• primitive person