PRIM'ITIVE, adjective [Latin primitivus; from primus, first.] 1. Pertaining to the beginning or origin; original; first; as the primitive state of Adam; primitive innocence; primitive ages; the primitive church; the primitive christian church or institutions; the primitive fathers. 2. Formal; affectedly solemn; imitating the supposed gravity of old times. 3. Original; primary; radical; not derived; as a primitive verb in grammar. Primitive rocks, in geology, rocks supposed to be first formed, being irregularly crystallized, and aggregated without a cement, and containing no organic remains; as granite, gneiss, etc. PRIM'ITIVE, noun An original word; a word not derived from another.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI