elementary

noun

(countable, mythology, mysticism) A supernatural being associated with the elements.

(countable and uncountable, informal) Ellipsis of elementary school. [(Canada, US, historically UK) A children’s school, typically older than toddlers and younger than adolescents. In the U.S., elementary schools cover grades 1 through 5, and the ages of the children are usually 6-11 years. At a minimum, elementary schools will teach basic reading, writing, arithmetic, and history.]

adjective

Relating to the basic, essential or fundamental part of something.

Very simple.

Relating to an elementary school.

(sciences) Fundamental: serving as a building block for more complicated structures or processes.

(physics) Relating to a subatomic particle.

(chemistry, of a reaction) Involving only a single reaction step and transition state.

(mathematics, of an argument or proof) Straightforward, employing only basic techniques; not requiring substantial knowledge (of some particular domain, object, etc.).

(mathematics, of a square matrix) Which performs a row or column operation on another matrix when the two are multiplied; see Elementary matrix on Wikipedia.Wikipedia (Such matrices are called "elementary" because they generate the general linear group).

(mathematics, of a symmetric polynomial) Arising from Vieta's formulas; see Elementary symmetric polynomial on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

(number theory, of an argument or proof, mostly historical outside the phrase "Elementary number theory") Making no use of complex analysis.

(archaic) Sublunary; not celestial; belonging to the sublunary sphere, to which the four classical elements (earth, air, fire and water) were confined; composed of or pertaining to these four elements.

Roots

elementumelement- · Latin · first principle, rudiment -arius-ary · Latin · pertaining to

Synonyms for elementary

elementaladj primaryadj basicadj simpleadj basaladj primogenial uncomplicatedadj abecedariann rudimentaryadj fundamentaladj

Synonyms & related words for elementary

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of elementary — including elemental, primary, basic, simple, basal, primogenial. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to elementary

Explore words related to elementary — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include elementariness, kindergarten, prekindergarten, preschool, school, schoolhouse, playschool, afterschool. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for elementary

Common synonyms for elementary include elemental, primary, basic, simple, basal, primogenial, uncomplicated, abecedarian — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does elementary come from?

The word elementary breaks down into 2 roots of Latin origin: element, from Latin elementum (“first principle, rudiment”); and -ary, from Latin -arius (“pertaining to”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.