primarily

American  

[prahy-mair-uh-lee, -mer-, prahy-mer-uh-lee, -mer-uh-] / praɪˈmɛər ə li, -ˈmɛr-, ˈpraɪ mɛr ə li, -mər ə- /

adverb

1. essentially; mostly; chiefly; principally.

   They live primarily from farming.

2. in the first instance; at first; originally.

   Primarily a doctor, he later became a lawyer.

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primarily British  

/ ˈpraɪmərəlɪ /

adverb

1. principally; chiefly; mainly

2. at first; originally

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Etymology

Origin of primarily

First recorded in 1610–20; primary + -ly

Explanation

Primarily means "for the most part." If in the summer, you primarily work at a restaurant, this is the thing you do most, though you also might hang out with friends, exercise, and read books. You can use the adverb primarily any time you'd use the word "mainly" — today, many people rely primarily on the Internet to get their news. This doesn't mean they never read newspapers or watch television news, but most of the time, they learn about current events online. The Latin root of primarily is primus, which means first — most important, most likely, or what you choose before anything else.

Example Sentences

The company has moved away from being primarily a supplier to the automotive industry and instead sought to capitalise on the massive AI investment boom.

From Barron's • Jul. 2, 2026

The results suggest that future improvements depend primarily on advances in materials science rather than overcoming an unavoidable law of nature.

From Science Daily • Jul. 2, 2026

Relying primarily on the collections of the New York Historical, “Democracy Matters” portrays the promise, changing contours and limits of American democracy.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 2, 2026

Experts point to a confluence of factors, and primarily that consumers want choices.

From MarketWatch • Jul. 2, 2026

“We are interested in heredity not primarily as a mathematical formulation,” he wrote, “but rather as a problem concerning the cell, the egg and the sperm.”

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee