English · Word Candidate

primary

/ˈpɹaɪ.m(ə.)ɹi/

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Also seen as: primaries · primarying · primaried

Sense 1

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

First or earliest in a group or series.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Đầu tiên hoặc sớm nhất trong nhóm hoặc loạt

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adjective

Examples

Children attend primary school, and teenagers attend secondary school.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 2

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Main; principal; chief; placed ahead of others.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Chính; chủ yếu; quan trọng nhất

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adjective

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 3

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

A primary election; a preliminary election to select a political candidate of a political party, or the first round of a two-round election.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Bầu cử sơ bộ để chọn ứng cử viên

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Noun

Examples

In recent primaries, for example, nearly 4% of absentees were rejected in Philadelphia; 8% in Kentucky; and 20% in parts of New York City.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 4

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

The first year of grade school.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Năm đầu tiên của trường tiểu học

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Noun

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “primary” mean?

First or earliest in a group or series.

Is “primary” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.