What does "secondary" mean?
Any flight feather attached to the ulna (forearm) of a bird.
Secondary
/ˈsɛkənˌdɛɹi/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Any flight feather attached to the ulna (forearm) of a bird.
- Grammar: secondary is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: accessory, accident, accidental, addendum.
- Useful contrasts: archival record, base assumption, base concept.
- Usage evidence: In my understanding, Robinson treats this element as secondary.
How to use "secondary"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "secondary" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "secondary" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "secondary" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "secondary" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "secondary" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "accessory" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "secondary", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any flight feather attached to the ulna (forearm) of a bird.
- 2 coil such that current is induced in it by passing a current through the primary coil wordnet
- 3 A radar return generated by the response of an aircraft's transponder to an interrogation signal broadcast by a radar installation, containing additional encoded identification and situational data not available from a simple primary return.
- 4 the defensive football players who line up behind the linemen wordnet
- 5 The second stage of a multistage thermonuclear weapon, which generates a fusion explosion when imploded as an indirect result of the fission explosion of the primary, and which, in a few extremely large weapons, itself implodes a fusion tertiary.
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 An act of issuing more stock by an already publicly traded corporation.
- 7 The defensive backs. Canadian
- 8 An inductive coil or loop that is magnetically powered by a primary in a transformer or similar.
- 9 One who occupies a subordinate or auxiliary place; a delegate deputy.
"the secondary, or undersheriff, of the city of London"
- 10 A secondary circle.
- 11 A satellite.
- 12 A secondary school.
"There are four secondaries in this district, each with several thousand pupils."
- 13 Ellipsis of secondary colour. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
- 14 Anything secondary or of lesser importance.
Adjective
- 1 Next in order to the first or primary; of second place in origin, rank, etc. not-comparable, usually
- 2 Originating from a deputy or delegated person or body. not-comparable, usually
"the work of secondary hands"
- 3 Derived from a parent compound by replacement of two atoms of hydrogen by organic radicals. not-comparable, usually
- 4 Produced by alteration or deposition subsequent to the formation of the original rock mass. not-comparable, usually
- 5 Developed by pressure or other causes. not-comparable, usually
"secondary cleavage"
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 Pertaining to the second joint of the wing of a bird. not-comparable, usually
- 7 Dependent or consequent upon another disease, or occurring in the second stage of a disease. not-comparable, usually
"Bright's disease is often secondary to scarlet fever."
- 8 Of less than primary importance. not-comparable, usually
"a secondary issue"
- 9 Related to secondary education, i.e. schooling between the ages of (approximately) 11 and 18. not-comparable, usually
- 10 Relating to the manufacture of goods from raw materials. not-comparable, usually
- 11 Formed by mixing primary colors. not-comparable, usually
"Yellow is a secondary light color, though a primary CMYK color."
- 12 Representing a reversion to an ancestral state. not-comparable, usually
"With the exception of a secondary loss in Dimecoenia, larvae of Ephydrini have prominent, ventral prolegs that bear crochets."
Adjective
- 1 belonging to a lower class or rank wordnet
- 2 not of major importance wordnet
- 3 being of second rank or importance or value; not direct or immediate wordnet
- 4 depending on or incidental to what is original or primary wordnet
- 5 inferior in rank or status wordnet
Antonyms
archival recordbase assumptionbase conceptbase units
Example
"In my understanding, Robinson treats this element as secondary."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "secondary"?
Common synonyms include: accessory, accident, accidental, addendum, addition, additional.
How do you use "secondary" in a sentence?
In my understanding, Robinson treats this element as secondary.
How do you pronounce "secondary"?
Pronounced /ˈsɛkənˌdɛɹi/.
Etymology
From Middle English secundarie, from Latin secundārius (“of the second class or quality”), from secundus (whence the English second) + -ārius (whence the English suffix -ary), equivalent to second + -ary; compare the French secondaire, the Italian secondario, the Occitan secundari, the Portuguese secundario, and the Spanish secundario.