prim

• IPA^(key): /pɹɪm/, [pʰɹ̠̊ɪm]

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪm

Of uncertain origin.

prim (comparative primmer, superlative primmest)

1. Of a person, their manner or appearance: Formal and precise; stiffly decorous.
   • 1708, [Jonathan Swift], “The Metamorphosis of Baucis and Philemon, Burlesqu’d; from the 8th Book of Ovid”, in Baucis and Philemon; a Poem. […], London: […] H. Hills, […], published 1709, →OCLC, page 8:

     Philemon was in great Surprize,⁠
     And hardly could believe his Eyes,
     Amaz’d to ſee her look ſo prim;
     And ſhe admir’d as much at him.

   • 1986, John le Carré, A Perfect Spy:

     God damn it, what does she want of me, this sad, beautiful bridgeplayer of the Fifth Floor, with her air of lost love and her prim carnality?

   • 2024 October 24, Judith Shulevitz, “Michel Houellebecq Has Some Fresh Predictions. Be Afraid.”, in The Atlantic‎^[1]:

     And although Paul shares an apartment with his prim wife, aptly named Prudence, they rarely see or speak to each other.

2. (by extension) Of a person: Prudish; straight-laced.
3. Of things: Neat; trim.

   prim regularity

• prim and proper
• prissy

prim (third-person singular simple present prims, present participle primming, simple past and past participle primmed) (dated or archaic)

1. (intransitive) To make one's expression prim. [with up]
2. (transitive) To give a prim or demure expression to (one's face, mouth, or (rare) lips).
3. (transitive) To dress (one) up affectedly or demurely. [with up or out]

prim (plural prims)

1. (obsolete) A prim person.

• primp

Unknown; see privet.

prim

1. (botany) privet

• Philip Babcock Gove et al., editors (1961), “prim a”, in Webster's Third New International Dictionary  […], volume II (H to R), published 1981, →ISBN, page 1800
• Philip Babcock Gove et al., editors (1961), “prim v”, in Webster's Third New International Dictionary  […], volume II (H to R), published 1981, →ISBN, page 1800
• “prim, v.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.
• “prim, n.³”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

Inherited from Latin prīmus,^[1] from earlier prīsmos from *prīsemos from Proto-Italic *priisemos.

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic, Valencia) [ˈpɾim]

• Audio (Catalonia):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -im

prim (feminine prima, masculine plural prims, feminine plural primes)

1. thin, skinny

• aprimar
• primesa
• primor

• primer

• “prim”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “prim” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “prim” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Inherited from Latin prīmus ("first" → "excellent"). Compare the two senses of English fine.

prim (feminine prima, masculine plural prims, feminine plural primes) (ORB, broad)

1. thin

   Antonym: èpès

• mince in DicoFranPro: Dictionnaire Français/Francoprovençal – on dicofranpro.llm.umontreal.ca
• prim in Lo trèsor Arpitan – on arpitan.eu

• AIS: Sprach- und Sachatlas Italiens und der Südschweiz [Linguistic and Ethnographic Atlas of Italy and Southern Switzerland] – map 1510: “un filo sottile” – on navigais-web.pd.istc.cnr.it
• ALF: Atlas Linguistique de la France^[2] [Linguistic Atlas of France] – map 1631AB: “mince” – on lig-tdcge.imag.fr
• Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002) “prīmus”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, volume 9: Placabilis–Pyxis, page 384

• prum

From Latin prīmus.

prim m (feminine singular prima, masculine plural primi, feminine plural primes)

1. first

From Latin prīma (“first; first hour”).

• IPA^(key): /priːm/

prīm ?

1. (historical) Prime, the first hour or tide (3-hour period) after dawn
2. (Christianity) Prime, the divine office appointed for the hour in the liturgy

• (hour; tide): āntīd
• (service): prīmsang

• prīmsang

• Joseph Bosworth, T. Northcote Toller (1898) “prīm”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎^[3], second edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Inherited from Latin prīmus.

• IPA^(key): /ˈprim/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -im

prim m or n (feminine singular primă, masculine plural primi, feminine and neuter plural prime)

1. (preposited) first

   Synonyms: întâi, dintâi

   Antonyms: ultim, din urmă, de pe urmă

2. (postposited, formal) prime (first in degree or salience)
   • 2007 February, Alexandru Ștefan, Teatrul azi [Theatre today]‎^[4], numbers 1–2, →ISSN, page 32:

     De aceea, lucrul individual a căpătat o importanță primă în această meserie.

     For that reason, solitary work has acquired prime importance in this profession.

3. (number theory) prime
4. (music) first (playing lead in an orchestra)
5. (mathematics) prime (marked with a prime symbol)

Romanian adjectives are usually placed after the noun they modify. However, prim in the sense of “first” always precedes its corresponding noun. Conversely, in the other senses it follows the noun as expected.

As with English first, prim is considered an intrinsically definite adjective and is usually articulated. Indefinite use is also possible: un prim pas (“a first step”).

• prima
• primar
• primăvară

Borrowed from Hungarian prim.

• IPA^(key): /ˈprim/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -im

prim n (plural primuri)

1. (Transylvania) decorative clothes border trim

• primă

• “prim”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2025
• Iorgu Iordan, Alexandru Graur, Ion Coteanu, editors (1978), “prim¹”, in Dicționarul Limbii Române‎^[5], volume 8, part 5, Bucharest: Academy of the Socialist Republic of Romania, pages 1420–1421
• Iorgu Iordan, Alexandru Graur, Ion Coteanu, editors (1978), “prim³, -ă”, in Dicționarul Limbii Române‎^[6], volume 8, part 5, Bucharest: Academy of the Socialist Republic of Romania, pages 1421–1422

From Ottoman Turkish پریم (prim), from French prime.

prim (definite accusative primi, plural primler)

1. prize
2. premium

• Nişanyan, Sevan (2002–) “prim”, in Nişanyan Sözlük
• Avery, Robert et al., editors (2013), The Redhouse Dictionary Turkish/Ottoman English, 21st edition, Istanbul: Sev Yayıncılık, →ISBN

prim (nominative plural prims)

1. beginning