primordial
/pɹaɪˈmɔɹ.di.əl/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.07 in modern English
15
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
4
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Characteristic of the earliest stage of the development of an organism, or relating to a primordium.
adj
adj
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
A first principle or element.
Example Sentences
- "the primordial facts of our intelligent nature"
- "As an archetypal image of primordial unity, the cosmic egg suggests that there is unity and fragmentation, eternity and time."
- "a primordial leaf; a primordial cell"
- "With a horrified shriek she tore herself from Tarzan’s arms, and the ape-man turned just in time to ward with his arm a terrific blow that De Coude had aimed at his head. Once, twice, three times the heavy stick fell with lightning rapidity, and each blow aided in the transition of the ape-man back to the primordial."
Etymology
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /pɹaɪˈmɔɹ.di.əl/
- British English: /pɹaɪˈmɔː.di.əl/
Subject
Wiktionary places this term in Geology.