primordial

Meaning

Adj

1. (not-comparable) First, earliest or original.
2. (not-comparable) Characteristic of the earliest stage of the development of an organism, or relating to a primordium.
3. (not-comparable) Primeval.
4. (not-comparable) Of an element or isotope: occurring primordially (on Earth) (i.e. inherited from when the Earth was formed); because it is stable, or radioactive but so long-lived that some is left over from when the Earth was formed. For example, primordial radioisotopes (T = half-life in years) include uranium-235 (T = 7×10⁸), potassium-40 (T = 1.25×10⁹), uranium-238 (T = 4.5×10⁹), and thorium-232 (T = 1.4×10¹⁰).

Noun

1. A first principle or element.
2. A primordial condition or state.

Synonyms

primeval

primitive

aboriginal

primal

original

pristine

primary

initial

primaeval

radical

indigenous

native

savage

ancient

real

supreme

true

underived

atavist

age-old

archaic

earliest

elemental

elementary

first

1st

fundamental

inceptive

initially

initiatory

originally

originative

paramount

Translations

primordiale

ursprünglich

primordial

primordial

oorspronkelijk

ilk

1st

primitivo

αρχέγονος

primitif

primordial

primitivo

primordial

originario

πρωτογενής

Pronounced as (IPA)

/pɹaɪˈmɔː.di.əl/

Etymology

From the Latin prīmōrdiālis (“of the beginning”). Compare primordium and -al.