primitive

adjective

• 1relating to, denoting, or preserving the character of an early stage in the evolutionary or historical development of something:primitive mammals Primitive Germanic
• relating to or denoting a preliterate, non-industrial society or culture characterized by simple social and economic organization:primitive people
• (of behaviour or emotion) apparently originating in unconscious needs or desires and unaffected by objective reasoning:the primitive responses we share with many animals
• of or denoting a simple, naive style of art that deliberately rejects sophisticated artistic techniques: the Fauves saw primitive art as a liberating force

• 2very basic or unsophisticated in terms of comfort, convenience, or efficiency:the accommodation at the camp was a bit primitive

• 3not developed or derived from anything else:primitive material of the universe
• Linguistics denoting a word, base, or root from which another is historically derived.
• Mathematics (of an algebraic or geometric expression) from which another is derived, or which is not itself derived from another.

• 4 Biology (of a part or structure) in the first or early stage of formation or growth; rudimentary. See also primitive streak.

noun

• 1a person belonging to a preliterate, non-industrial society: reports of travellers and missionaries described contemporary primitives

• 2a pre-Renaissance painter, or one who imitates the pre-Renaissance style.
• an artist deliberately employing a simple, naive style: the Catalan primitives
• a painting by a primitive artist, or an object in a primitive style: Santa Fe style antiques and Mexican primitives Ohio primitives such as treenware utensils

• 3 Linguistics a word, base, or root from which another is historically derived.
• Mathematics an algebraic or geometric expression from which another is derived; a curve of which another is the polar or reciprocal.
• Computing any of a set of basic geometric shapes which may be generated in computer graphics: the program includes a complete set of drawing primitives