How to Use primary in a Sentence

primary

1 of 3 adjective
  • The economy was the primary focus of the debate.
  • The book is based mainly on primary sources rather than secondary sources.
  • The family is the primary social unit of human life.
  • The primary function of our schools is to educate our young people.
  • We just started our primary flight training.
  • The primary stars of this game are the builders.
    — Dave Hyde, Sun Sentinel, 7 Feb. 2026
  • Three primary suites face the ocean.
    — Spencer Elliott, Forbes.com, 6 June 2026
  • Comfort is one of the primary things that makes a home feel like a home.
    — Asia London Palomba, The Spruce, 30 Jan. 2026
  • The large primary suite has a five-piece bath and a steam shower.
    — Sara B. Hansen, Denver Post, 21 Mar. 2026
  • Make sure to do so in time for the primary and midterm elections.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 25 Apr. 2026
  • At this point, the claims process is the primary path for refunds.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 31 Jan. 2026
  • The latter is where the kitchen and primary suite are found.
    — Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 10 Sep. 2025
  • That will likely lead to a primary runoff.
    — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 7 Jan. 2026
  • The primary bedroom has open city views.
    — Mark David, Robb Report, 8 Oct. 2025
  • Our primary method is to troll small stickbaits upstream at very low speed.
    — Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 25 Jan. 2026
  • Her mom was one of the primary drivers behind her videos.
    — Tabitha Parent, PEOPLE, 10 Apr. 2026
  • Though the primary suite takes the cake with a huge walk-in closet and a dressing room.
    — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 31 July 2023
  • At the moment, there seem to be two primary roadblocks.
    — The Athletic Nhl, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
  • Four bedrooms are spread across one of the floors, while the primary suite sits on the top level.
    — Tori Latham, Robb Report, 22 Oct. 2025
  • The fastball was the primary pitch.
    — Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 24 Sep. 2025
  • For her, one form fed another—none was primary.
    — Nicole Rudick, The New York Review of Books, 25 Apr. 2026
  • The primary election is set to take place March 3.
    — Arkansas Online, 11 Sep. 2025
  • The primary goal is to weed out the poor singers and keep the one talented singer as the winner.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 13 June 2023
  • The primary election will be held on June 2.
    — Britta Miller, The Washington Examiner, 30 May 2026
  • There are two primary forms of vitamin K found in foods.
    — Teresa Mull, FOXNews.com, 27 June 2026
  • Two primary types of stone known as sarcens and bluestones make up the formation.
    — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 4 June 2026
  • Another acts as a primary suite, with the third being a guest yurt.
    — Tj MacIas, Sacbee.com, 24 Sep. 2025
  • And primary elections are a big reason why.
    — Eric McDaniel, NPR, 30 May 2026
  • But for many primary voters, Trump is still very much in the picture.
    — Sam Gringlas, NPR, 16 May 2026
  • The primary bedroom with a luxe stone fireplace.
    — Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 10 Sep. 2025

primary

2 of 3 noun
  • But that’s what primaries are for.
    — Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 26 Sep. 2025
  • That will be true in three weeks, when the primaries pick up again.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 1 July 2026
  • This primary should be a wake-up call.
    — Alisa Kaplan, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026
  • The first primaries of the year weren’t short on drama.
    — ABC News, 4 Mar. 2026
  • When do primaries begin for the midterms?
    — Irene Wright, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
  • Nine states have already held their primaries.
    — Sarah D. Wire, USA Today, 18 May 2026
  • New York's state primaries are in June.
    — Oren Oppenheim, ABC News, 21 Jan. 2026
  • Last year there was even a primary for the library board.
    — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 10 Jan. 2026
  • My sense is, before the primary, a lot of this has come out.
    — CBS News, 7 June 2026
  • There have been plenty of statewide primaries before that lacked a big name.
    — Craig Gilbert, jsonline.com, 26 Aug. 2025
  • The outcry wasn’t enough to sway the primary against her.
    — Nick Sullivan, Charlotte Observer, 10 Sep. 2025
  • Heather Gray will be the primary.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 3 Feb. 2026
  • The June 2 primary is some ways off.
    — Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2026
  • There are going to be some other primaries that are going to test this too.
    — Dana Taylor, USA Today, 12 Mar. 2026
  • The primary again, right around the corner.
    — NBC news, 3 May 2026
  • This year, many waited until late in the primary to make their picks.
    — Ben Paviour, Sacbee.com, 26 Apr. 2026
  • In each of the past three primaries, Carter was able to skate to victory.
    — John C. Moritz, Austin American Statesman, 20 Jan. 2026
  • June Most states will hold primaries throughout June.
    — Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 18 Feb. 2026
  • But then that's always been the case that people can be exposed in these primaries.
    — ABC News, 14 Jan. 2024
  • Now one of his staffers is challenging her in her primary.
    — Hayleigh Colombo, IndyStar, 9 Jan. 2026
  • Less than a month out from the primary, there’s still no clear frontrunner.
    — Ben Paviour, Sacbee.com, 18 May 2026
  • Lyles hasn’t seen a tight race since her first primary in 2017.
    — Nick Sullivan, Charlotte Observer, 15 Oct. 2025
  • Both are Democrats and will face off in the March 3 primary.
    — Jane Harper, Dallas Morning News, 26 Feb. 2026
  • The primary is set for June 16.
    — Kaia Hubbard, CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026
  • The area swung to Mamdani in the primary.
    — Eduardo Cuevas, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025
  • The Texas primary will be held on March 3.
    — Jason Lemon, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
  • Massie ended up winning his primary in a rout.
    — Russell Berman, The Atlantic, 25 Apr. 2026
  • Known as the spring election, the April 7 race is not a primary.
    — Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 30 Mar. 2026
  • Colorado should adopt fully open primaries.
    — Kent Thiry, Denver Post, 27 Apr. 2026
  • My job is going to be to try to get more people to get out to vote in the primary and of course, the runoff.
    — Jack Fink, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2026

primary

3 of 3 verb
  • There are some strategists and activists who are drawing up lists of potential candidates to primary.
    — Christian Paz, Vox, 6 July 2025
  • Overnight, the president threatening to primary him over his opposition.
    — Nbc News, NBC news, 29 June 2025
  • Trump has threatened to primary all GOP lawmakers that defied his mid-decade redistricting push in the state.
    — Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 12 Dec. 2025
  • Phillips considered President Biden’s advanced age and his lack of popularity, and broke ranks to primary him.
    — Xochitl Gonzalez, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2026
  • New district lines have forced incumbents to primary each other in Michigan, Georgia and West Virginia.
    — Arit John, Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2022
  • Hogg had roiled the party with his announcement that the party would primary some incumbents seen as being ineffective or unfit for the political moment.
    — Sarah Polus, The Hill, 14 June 2025
  • The group is part of an effort to elect a new generation of lawmakers and drew headlines for the group’s $20 million effort to primary safe House Democrats.
    — Julia Manchester, The Hill, 6 Oct. 2025
  • New York Governor Kathy Hochul's top deputy is running to primary her in next year's gubernatorial race.
    — Sonam Sheth, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 June 2025
  • But that was before a series of threats and swatting incidents against lawmakers and other politicians, most of whom have opposed or not issued a public stance on redistricting, as well as the president's pledge to primary the holdouts.
    — Marissa Meador, IndyStar, 1 Dec. 2025
  • The world’s wealthiest man threatened to primary those who campaigned on reducing government spending but vote for the One, Big Beautiful Bill Act.
    — Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 1 July 2025
  • Trump has threatened to primary any Republicans who refuse to redistrict, and many lawmakers, including some called out by the president, have reported swatting or bomb threats directed at them recently.
    — Caroline Vakil, The Hill, 5 Dec. 2025
  • Meanwhile, Massie faces a political fight ahead of the 2026 midterms due to his opposition to Trump administration policies, which has led the president to threaten to primary him.
    — Brendan Cole, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
  • Enacting a last minute new map, forcing voters to wonder why their community’s representation is inexplicably divided, and scrambling candidates to primary each other for their best chance at reelection, is not in the best interest of voters.
    — Melody Lopez, New York Daily News, 5 Feb. 2024
  • On the Republican side, Ashley Hinson, a congresswoman representing the state’s Second District, is facing Jim Carlin, a former state senator who previously attempted to primary the Republican senator Chuck Grassley in 2022.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 2 June 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'primary.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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