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🌟 Best quality 💪 Most successful 💪 Best time 🔢 Not divisible ⚙️ To prepare 🔢 A special number 🙏 Early prayer
to prime

to prime

56 5.2
To prepare something so it is ready to use
  • verb
  • /praɪm/
translation icon : preparar
  • To prepare the canvas for painting, artists often prime it with a layer of gesso.
  • to prime the pump
  • to prime someone to accept
  • to prime public opinion

And then I'm going to prime with the Maybelline Blur stick.

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Examples

  • A music-teaching implication is that children of all ages are primed to learn about timbre discrimination.

    Academic text (2015)

  • OK, So what we're going to do is prime the eyelid first.

  • OK, so now it's time to prime and paint this guy.

  • You prime it by pressing that back like this.

    Goldfinger (1964)

  • To start off, we're going to prime our lids.

  • - Make sure the explosive's primed.

    The War Below (2021)

  • The fog machines are primed.

    Blades of Glory (2007)

  • The needle should be primed with the solution; this typically requires 0.2 ml.

    Academic text (2004)

  • Before painting the walls, you need to prime them to ensure that the paint adheres properly.

  • He decided to prime his car's engine before taking it out for a long drive.

Synonyms

to prepare
vsto prime
∞ 1.0

Make something ready for use or an event

is mainly about physical conditioning rather than planning or arranging
to set
vsto prime
622 1.0

To prepare something for use or an event

focuses on physical conditioning steps rather than general arranging
to prep
vsto prime
  • Informal
95 3.6

To get something or yourself ready

is more formal or technical and stresses specific conditioning actions
to ready
vsto prime
41 1.0

Make someone or something prepared for use

emphasizes active conditioning steps rather than plain suitability
to ground
vsto prime
  • Specialized
5 7.4

To cover a surface with a base coat before painting

is broader and means getting things fit for use in many ways
to undercoat
vsto prime
  • Specialized
4.4

To apply a first layer of paint to a surface before the final coat

is the general action of making items fit for use beyond painting

Idioms

past its prime
2 5.2

No longer at its best or in good condition

Compounds

Prime Minister
522 3.2

The head of a country's government who leads the cabinet and decides policy

prime minister
216 2.3

The head of a country's government who leads it and makes key decisions

prime time
72 3.1

Evening time when most people watch television

prime number
  • Specialized
7 3.6

A whole number greater than 1 that you can divide only by 1 and itself

prime location
4 3.7

A very good place in a town where people want to live or work

prime of life
3 4.2

Years when a person is strongest and most active

prime mover
  • Formal
1 9.9

A first being people think starts everything, often the God of some religions

prime factor
  • Specialized
1 4.9

A number greater than one that can only be divided by one and itself and divides another number exactly

prime interest rate
  • Specialized
1 4.2

The lowest interest rate banks charge to their best business customers

prime meridian
1 4.4

An imaginary line at zero degrees that runs through Greenwich, England and is used to measure east and west

prime quantity
  • Specialized
6.7

A whole number greater than 1 that can only be divided evenly by 1 and itself

How Prepared

to condition
2 3.7
to prime
56 5.2
to prepare
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

prime infinitive
primed past
primed past participle
priming present participle
primes third person singular

Etymology

Prime comes from the Latin primus meaning 'first', and to prime something is to make it ready 'first' before use. That is why you 'prime' a pump, engine, or surface to prepare it for action.