Adjacent Words

Primer definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PRI'MER, a. First; original. [Not in use.]
PRIM'ER, n. A small prayer book for church service, or an office of the virgin Mary.
1. A small elementary book for teaching children to read.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: an introductory textbook
2: any igniter that is used to initiate the burning of a propellant [syn: fuse, fuze, fusee, fuzee, primer, priming]
3: the first or preliminary coat of paint or size applied to a surface [syn: flat coat, ground, primer, priming, primer coat, priming coat, undercoat]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, layperson's prayer book, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin primarium, from Late Latin, neuter of primarius primary Date: 14th century 1. a small book for teaching children to read 2. a small introductory book on a subject 3. a short informative piece of writing II. noun Date: 1819 1. a device for priming; especially a cap, tube, or wafer containing percussion powder or compound used to ignite an explosive charge 2. material used in priming a surface — called also prime coat 3. a molecule (as a short strand of RNA or DNA) whose presence is required for formation of another molecule (as a longer chain of DNA)

Oxford Reference Dictionary

1. n. 1 a substance used to prime wood etc. 2 a cap, cylinder, etc., used to ignite the powder of a cartridge etc. 2. n. 1 an elementary textbook for teaching children to read. 2 an introductory book. Etymology: ME f. AF f. med.L primarius -arium f. L primus first

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Primer Prim"er, n. One who, or that which, primes; specifically, an instrument or device for priming; esp., a cap, tube, or water containing percussion powder or other compound for igniting a charge of gunpowder.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Primer Prim"er, a. [OF. primer, primier, premier, F. premier. See Premier.] First; original; primary. [Obs.] ``The primer English kings.'' --Drayton. Primer fine (O. Eng. Law), a fine due to the king on the writ or commencement of a suit by fine. --Blackstone. Primer seizin (Feudal Law), the right of the king, when a tenant in capite died seized of a knight's fee, to receive of the heir, if of full age, one year's profits of the land if in possession, and half a year's profits if the land was in reversion expectant on an estate for life; -- now abolished. --Blackstone.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Primer Prim"er, n. [Originally, the book read at prime, the first canonical hour. LL. primae liber. See Prime, n., 4.] 1. Originally, a small prayer book for church service, containing the little office of the Virgin Mary; also, a work of elementary religious instruction. The primer, or office of the Blessed Virgin. --Bp. Stillingfleet. 2. A small elementary book for teaching children to read; a reading or spelling book for a beginner. As he sat in the school at his prymer. --Chaucer. 3. (Print.) A kind of type, of which there are two species; one, called long primer, intermediate in size between bourgeois and small pica [see Long primer]; the other, called great primer, larger than pica. Note: Great primer type.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(primers) Primer is a type of paint that is put onto wood in order to prepare it for the main layer of paint. N-MASS

Moby Thesaurus

abecedarium, abecedary, alphabet, alphabet book, and arithmetic, basics, battledore, blasting cap, cap, casebook, chromogen, coat, coat of paint, coating, color, color filter, color gelatin, colorant, coloring, dead-color, detonating powder, detonator, distemper, drier, dye, dyestuff, electric detonator, elementary education, elements, exercise book, exploder, exterior paint, first principles, first steps, flat coat, flat wash, floor enamel, fulminating mercury, fuse, gradus, grammar, ground, hornbook, induction, initiation, interior paint, introduction, manual, manual of instruction, medium, mercury fulminate, opaque color, outlines, paint, percussion cap, pigment, primacord, prime coat, priming, principia, principles, propaedeutic, reader, reading, rudiments, schoolbook, speller, spelling book, squib, stain, t, tempera, text, thinner, tinction, tincture, transparent color, turpentine, turps, undercoat, undercoating, vehicle, wash, wash coat, workbook, writing