Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.

Definition: Prim |
PrimAdjective1. Affectedly dainty or refined. 2. Exaggeratedly proper; "my straitlaced Aunt Anna doesn't approve of my miniskirts". Verb1. Assume a prim appearance: "They mince and prim". 2. Contract one's lips; "She primmed her lips after every bite of food". 3. Dress primly. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "prim" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1615. (references) |
Note: Prim \Prim\, transitive verb. [imperfect & past participle. Primmed; Primming.]. (Websters 1913) |
| The following table is compiled from various sources, across various languages. When English abbreviations or acronyms come from a non-English source, this is noted. | |||
| Entry | Source | Expression | Field |
prim | English | Primary | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |||
Synonyms: PrimSynonyms: dainty (adj), mincing (adj), niminy-piminy (adj), priggish (adj), prissy (adj), prudish (adj), puritanical (adj), square-toed (adj), straightlaced (adj), straitlaced (adj), tight-laced (adj), twee (adj), victorian (adj), prim out (v), prim up (v). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Affectation | Stiff, starch, formal, prim, smug, demure, tire a quatre epingles, quakerish, puritanical, prudish, pragmatical, priggish, conceited, coxcomical, foppish, dandified; finical, finikin; mincing, simpering, namby-pamby, sentimental. |
Pride | Stiff, stiff-necked; starch; perked stuck-up; in buckram, strait-laced; prim; (affected). |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Prim |
| English words defined with "prim": Missish ♦ Primmed, Primming. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "prim": Neat as a Pin ♦ Salchichon, STARCHED. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "prim": Primp, Privet. (references) |
| Non-English Usage: "Prim" is also a word in the following languages with English translations in parentheses. Albanian (premium, prime), Catalan (gaunt, lean, slender, thin), German (prime), Occitan (thin), Romanian (early, first, foremost, front, fundamental, initial, maiden, one, original, premier, primal, prime), Swedish (prime), Turkish (bonus, bounty, contango, premium). |
| Domain | Usage | |
Movie/TV Titles | The Private World of Miss Prim (1966) Prim (1930) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
References | |
Books | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | ![]() | Johann Jacob Baier : Medic. Doct. et Prof. Prim. Aldorf. Reip. Norib. Physicus. Credit: National Library of Medicine. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| "Prim" is generally used as an adjective (general or positive) -- approximately 97.54% of the time. "Prim" is used about 122 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Adjective (general or positive) | 97.54% | 119 | 29,501 |
| Unclassified Items | 2.46% | 3 | 202,518 |
| Total | 100.00% | 122 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| The following table summarizes the usage of "prim" based on a population census conducted in the United States. Ranks and frequencies are based on all names reported and classified. |
| Name | Usage/Gender | Usage per 100 million Persons | Rank in USA |
| Prim | Last name | 1,000 | 17,602 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits. | |||
1. Prim, AR |
Expressions using "prim": prim and proper ♦ prim one's face ♦ prim one's lips ♦ prim oneself up ♦ prim out ♦ prim up ♦ prim up one's mouth. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "prim": prim-faced, prim-looking. | |
Ending with "prim": common-prim, over-prim. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "prim"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Albanian | qibar (fastidious), i ngrirë (congealed, dull, freezing, frost-bound, frosted, frozen, glace, glassy, lame, numb, starchy, stiff, stilted), i karfosur. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | متزمت (austere, pi, puritan, puritanical, rigid, rigorous, severe, stick in the mud, strict), تصنع (affectation, attitudinize, industrialize, make up, mannerism, mummery, pose, pretend), تدلل (coquet, flirt, flirtation), عتيق (age-old, ancient, fossil, hoary, musty, old, old fashioned, out of date, passe, superannuated, time honored, time worn, used), انيق (smart). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bulgarian | старомомински (niminy-piminy, old-maidish), спретнат (dapper, dinky, rakish, sailorly, smart, smug, snug, tidy, tight, tricksy, trig, trim, well groomed), надуто коректен, надуто официален, прекалено морален, превзет (affected, cute, flamboyant, fussy, glossy, histrionic, lackadaisical, mannered, mincing, minikin, namby-pamby, nice, niminy-piminy, old-maidish, pansy, precious, pretentious, pretty, pretty-pretty, priggish, prissy, pseudo, recherche, schoolmistressy, sidy, snobbish, stuffy), подреждам най-грижливо, подреден (in good order, neat, orderly, tidy, tight, trim, well arranged), държа се като стара мома, държа се превзето (mince). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 呆板. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Czech | pedantský (donnish, finicky, fussy, hairsplitting, meticulous, pedantic), přepjatý (exalted, extreme, genteel), ostýchavý (backward, bashful, coy, demure, diffident, self conscious, shamefaced, shy), formální (formal, punctilious, staid). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Farsi | یاسم , نوارابیض , تمیز (Clean, Dapper, Dinky, Neat, Pure, Scrubby), خیلی محتاط (Ultraconservative), خودراگرفتن (Perk), اراستن (Apparel, Arrange, Array, Attire, Brave, Clothe, Embroider, Equip, Grace, Groom, Habit, Illustrate, Line, Perk, Pretty, Primp, Prune, Range, Rank, Stud, Tidy, Trim), رسمی وخشک بودن , رسمی وخشک , برگ نو. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | trop coquet, très convenable, se guinder, guindé, correct (proper), coqueter, contraint, compassé, collet monté. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | spröde (aloof, austere, brittle, demure, obdurate, recalcitrant, reserved, rigid, rough, stiff), ordentlich (fairly, full, neat, neatly, orderly, proper, properly, real, reasonable, regular, reputable, respectable, seemily, seemy, tidily, tidy, trim, uncluttered, unruffled), geziert (adorned, affected, simpering, simperingly, stilted). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | κομψόσ (bijou, chic, comely, dainty, dapper, debonair, dressy, elegant, fancy, fine, jaunty, natty, neat, nifty, posh, pretty, quaint, rakish, smart, spark plug, sparkish, spiffy, stylish, trig, trim, well groomed), στολίζω (adorn, array, attire, beautify, bespangle, caparison, deck, decorate, doll, doll up, embellish, garnish, ornament, perk, prank, primp, prink, titivate, tog, trim), στολίζομαι (doll, dress up, preen oneself, prink, titivate, tog, tog up), περιποιημένοσ (natty, trim), επιτηδευμένοσ (meretricious), λεπτολόγοσ (caviller, discriminating, finicky, meticulous, particular, pernickety, scrupulous, squeamish), τυπικόσ (ceremonial, ceremonious, conventional, formal, modal, perfunctory, starched, typical). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hebrew | מעומלן (starched, starchy, stiffened), מצט ע (demure, prudish), "ק"ק י (meticulous, punctilious, scrupulous). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hungarian | pedáns (meticulous, painstaking, pedantic, smug), kimért (dry, reserved, rigid, severe, stand-off, stiff, stringent, tempered, undemonstrative). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indonesian | rapi (efficient, orderly, presentable, snug), genit (firtatious, missish, prudish, vain). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | formale (formal, formally, punctiliously, token), compassato (formal, staid, stiff), cerimonioso (ceremonious, courtly, formal), affettato (affected, assumed, Dandy, euphuistic, finical, foppish, genteel, labored, laboured, mincing, niminy-piminy, pretty-pretty, prissy, sliced). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Kanji | 澄ます (look prim, put on airs, to be unruffled, to clear, to look demure, to look unconcerned, to make clear). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Katakana | すます (look prim, put on airs, to be unruffled, to clear, to conclude, to finish, to get along, to get it over with, to look demure, to look unconcerned, to make clear, to pay back, to settle), すましや (a prim person), おすまし (a prim and proper girl). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manx | mettey (boneless, delicate, faint-hearted, shaky, soft, supine, tender, weak-minded, yellow), dendeaysagh (dainty, delicate, effeminate, effeminate man, fastidious, small eater). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | impray formalista (formal, formalist, precisian, punctilious, sententious, square-toes, starchy), exibir modos afetados, empertigado (perky, starchy), cerimonioso (ceremonious, formal, solemn, starchy), afetado (affected, bijou, conceited, coxcombical, dandified, dollish, far-fetched, finical, foppish, forced, fulsome, mannered, miminy-piminy, niminy-piminy, pompous, precious, pretentious, scenic, scenical, smug, stilted, theatrical, wiredrawn). (various references) pretenţios (affected, cavilling, choosey, exacting, exigent, fastidious, finical, important, inkhorn, particular, pretentious, puffy, sophomoric), schimonosi (contort, corrupt, deform, disfigure), nãzuros (dainty, fastidious, humoursome, picky, self willed), formal (express, formal, formally, formulary, modal, official, scholastic, solemn, stiff), aranjat (concerted, ensconced, settled, snug, solved, tidy, trim, well arranged), îngrijit (accurate, accurately, beautiful, careful, clean, correct, groomed, neat, neatly, orderly, tidy, trim, well groomed). (various references) аккуратный (accurate, exact, meticulous, natty, neat, on time, orderly, precise, prompt, punctual, spruce, tidy, trim), принимать строгий вид. (various references) preterano uredan, uspijati se, ukočen (numb, stiff, stodgy, torpid), afektiran (kittenish, mannered). (various references) remilgado (demure, mincing, old-maidish, prissy, prude, squeamish), recatado (cautions, coy, demure, gingerly, maidenly), forzado (coercible, drafted, enforced, forced, forcible, sickly, strained), estirado (drawn, extended, formal, pompous, Sniffy, starchy, stiff, stiff necked, stretched, stretched tight, stuck up, tense, tight, tight-fisted, vain). (various references) stel (fixed, formal, frigid, hard, numb, rigid, set, starchy, stark, stiff, torpid, wooden), prudentlig (smug), korrekt (correct, correcting, correctly, decorous, just, right). (various references) resmi davranmak (stand on ceremony), kuralcı, aşırı resmi (niminy-piminy, unbending), aşırı düzenli, aşırı ciddi (as stiff as a ramrod), çok ciddi davranmak. (various references) eljiremek (be prim, mince). (various references) набирати строгого вигляду, напружений (arduous, chilly, constrained, eager, high pressure, hot, stiff, strained, stressful, strung, sulfurous, sulphurous, tensional, tight, wrought up), манірний (affected, angular, ceremonious, donnish, finical, lackadaisical, mannered, mincing, minikin, namby-pamby, niminy-piminy, offish, prudish, smug, starchy), бирючина (privet), педантичний (donnish, dryasdust, meticulous, notional, pedantic, pedantical, pernickety, persnickety, precise, priggish, punctilious, square-toed). (various references) ra vẻ nghiêm nghị; ra vẻ đoan trang, ra vẻ đứng đắn, lên mặt đạo đức. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | primus. (various references) |
| Old French | 900-1400 | prim. (various references) |
| French | 1500-Modern | prim. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "prim": prima, primacies, primacy, primage, primages, primal, primalities, primality, primaries, primarily, primary, primas, primatal, primatals, primate, primates, primateship, primateships, primatial, primatological, primatologies, primatologist, primatologists, primatology, primavera, prime, primed, primely, primeness, primenesses, primer, primero, primeros, primers, primes, primeval, primevally, primi, primine, primines, priming, primings, primipara, primiparae, primiparas, primiparous, primitive, primitively, primitiveness, primitivenesses, primitives. (additional references) | |
Words ending with "prim": trimethoprim. (additional references) | |
Words containing "prim": imprimatur, imprimaturs, imprimis, postprimary, preprimary, reprimand, reprimanded, reprimanding, reprimands, subprimate, subprimates, trimethoprims, unprimed. (additional references) | |
| |
"Prim" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: cpim, irim, Krim, parmi, peram, perin, phim, phrum, pim, pir, pirim, Pirin, pirm, Plim, plimm, poim, prah, praik, pramm, pream, preem, prelm, prem, prema, pren, pri, pria, priam, prib, pric, priem, prij, prik, pril, primi, primk, primt, prin, Prinn, prip, prit, priv, priw, priz, prizm, Prmi, Prohm, prsi, prum, prun, prym, pryn, purrim, pyrum, wrim. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "prim" (pronounced pri"m) |
| 3 | -r i" m | brim, grim, rim, trim. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "i-m-p-r" | |
-1 letter: imp, mir, rim, rip. | |
-2 letters: mi, pi. | |
| Words containing the letters "i-m-p-r" | |
+1 letter: crimp, prima, prime, primi, primo, primp, prims, prism. | |
+2 letters: armpit, crimps, crimpy, empire, epimer, impair, impark, impart, import, improv, impure, jimper, limper, mopier, permit, porism, prelim, premie, premix, primal, primas, primed, primer, primes, primly, primos, primps, primus, prisms, purism, rimple, scrimp, shrimp, simper, spirem, umpire. | |
+3 letters: armpits, bimorph, bumpier, campier, crampit, crimped, crimper, crimple, demirep, dimorph, dumpier, empires, empiric, emporia, emprise, emprize, emptier, epiderm, epigram, epimere, epimers, gimpier, gripman, gripmen, hempier, humpier, impairs, impaler, imparks, imparts, impearl, impeder, imperia, imperil, implore, imports, imposer, impower, impregn, impresa, imprese, impress, imprest, imprint, improve, improvs, imputer, jumpier, lempira, limpers, lumpier, meropia, meropic, mispart, morphia, morphic, morphin, palmier, perming, permits, pilgrim, pinworm, pismire, plumier, porisms, preemie, prelims, premier, premies, premise, premiss, premium, premixt, pretrim, primacy, primage, primary, primate, primely, primero, primers, primine, priming, primmed, primmer, primped, primsie, primula, promine, promise, protium, proximo, pumicer, purisms, pyramid, rampike, ramping, rampion, rimpled, rimples, romping, rompish, scrimps, scrimpy, semipro, shrimps, shrimpy, simpers, simpler, spermic, spireme, spirems, spumier, triumph, tropism, umpired, umpires, vampire, whimper, wimpier. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Hexadecimal (or equivalents, 770AD-1900s) (references)50 72 69 6D |
| Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519; backwards) (references)
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| American Sign Language (origins from 1620-1817 in Italy and, especially, France) (references)
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| Semaphore (1791, in France) (references)
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| Braille (1829, in France) (references)
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Morse Code (1836) (references).--. .-. .. -- |
| Dancing Men (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1903) (references)
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Binary Code (1918-1938, probably earlier) (references)01010000 01110010 01101001 01101101 |
HTML Code (1990) (references)P r i m |
ISO 10646 (1991-1993) (references)0050 0072 0069 006D |
| British Sign Language (Fingerspelling, BSL; 1992, British Deaf Association Dictionary of British Sign Language) (references)
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Encryption (beginner's substitution cypher): (references)50847579 |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Usage Frequency | 9. Names: Frequency 10. Cities 11. Expressions 12. Expressions: Internet | 13. Translations: Modern 14. Translations: Ancient 15. Abbreviations 16. Acronyms | 17. Derivations 18. Rhymes 19. Anagrams 20. Orthography | 21. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.