primarily
adverb
pri·mar·i·ly
prī-ˈmer-ə-lē 
also prə-
chiefly British ˈprī-mə-rə-lē
1
: for the most part : chiefly
… has now become primarily a residential town …—
S. P. B. Mais
S. P. B. Mais2
: in the first place : originally
Examples of primarily in a Sentence
the university was primarily an agricultural college when it was founded over two centuries ago
ketchup is primarily made from tomatoes
Recent Examples on the Web
Just four companies — Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms and Microsoft — plan to spend up to $720 billion this year, primarily on AI data centers.
—
Alex Veiga,
Los Angeles Times,
27 June 2026
The fund's goal is to protect local businesses, maintain affordable commercial rents and prevent properties from being converted into uses that serve primarily tourists or second-home owners.
—
Kenny Choi,
CBS News,
26 June 2026
The summer camps of the late 19th and early 20th centuries were primarily for white, Protestant, middle- and upper-class boys from Northeastern cities.
—
Derek H. Alderman,
The Conversation,
26 June 2026
Before that, Becca was a staff writer at The Week, primarily contributing to Speed Reads.
—
Becca Stanek,
TheWeek,
26 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for primarily
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Alex Veiga,
Los Angeles Times,
27 June 2026
The fund's goal is to protect local businesses, maintain affordable commercial rents and prevent properties from being converted into uses that serve primarily tourists or second-home owners.
—
Kenny Choi,
CBS News,
26 June 2026
The summer camps of the late 19th and early 20th centuries were primarily for white, Protestant, middle- and upper-class boys from Northeastern cities.
—
Derek H. Alderman,
The Conversation,
26 June 2026
Before that, Becca was a staff writer at The Week, primarily contributing to Speed Reads.
—
Becca Stanek,
TheWeek,
26 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for primarily
Cite this Entry
“Primarily.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/primarily. Accessed 3 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
primarily
adverb
pri·mar·i·ly
prī-ˈmer-ə-lē
1
: for the most part : chiefly
2
: in the first place : originally
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