VOCABULARY LESSON 8
Pds. 4 & 7
ROOT WORD:
PRIMUS“first”
1. premier- adj
Examples:
1. The winners of the Super Bowl are
considered the premier football team in the
nation.
 2. At the Grammys, Adele’s album was voted
the premier album of the year.
 3. Getting homework done is John’s premier
responsibility after school.

1. premier- n
Examples:
1. The premier of Israel sought peace
within the country.
 2. Last year, Italy elected a new premier
to rule over the country.
 3. The premier is in charge of making
and enforcing new laws.

1. premier- adj/n
DO NOT get premier mixed up with premiere:
1. premier- adj/n
1. adj- first in order or importance
2. noun- a prime minister or head
of state
2. primate- n
1.
2. primate- n
2.
2. primate- n
1.
2.
An archbishop or bishop who ranks
highest among others.
A member of the order of animals
that includes monkeys, apes, and
humans.
3. prime- n
Examples:

At the prime of their career, the
Beatles had five songs of the Billboard
charts.

People disagree about which stage
represents the prime of life.

Oranges are in their prime during the
winter months.
3. prime- adj
Examples:

TV networks schedule their best programs
during prime time, when the greatest
number of people are watching.

Michael Jordan is a prime example of how
hard work pays off in the long run.

The holidays are a prime time to buy
things on sale.
3. prime- n/adj
1. noun- first in rank, excellence,
quality, importance, or time.
2. adj- chief; most important
4. primeval- adj
Examples:
 A primeval lake once covered
most of California’s San Joaquin
Valley.
 Dinosaurs are a primeval species.
 Language can be traced back to
primeval cultures.
4. primeval- adj
Belonging to the first ages, ancient.
5. primordial- adj
Examples:



Humans have a primordial instinct for
survival.
When babies are born, they have a
primordial need for food, warmth, and
love.
The confrontation with the bully set-off
Scotty’s primordial reaction of fight-orflight.
5. primordial- adj
Original; fundamental.
ROOT WORD:
POST“after”
6. posterior- adj
Situated behind or at the back.
6. posterior- adj
The posterior room
of the house.
The posterior
seats.
7. posterity- n
Examples:

The destruction of the rain forest makes us
wonder if our posterity will inherit any
wilderness lands at all.

Gina’s great grandmother would be happy to
know that three generations of her posterity
have carried on the name Regina.

We may not be sure what life will be like for
our posterity, but we can make some
predictions.
7. posterity- n
1.
Future generations
2.
A person’s descendents
8. posthumous- adj
Examples:

The Diary of Anne Frank, which recounts the
young girl’s experiences in the Holocaust,
has brought Anne posthumous fame.

The scientist wanted his children to release
a posthumous biography of his life, so
that even the last days of his life could be
included.

The woman’s will was a posthumous
account of her final wishes.
8. posthumous- adj
Occurring or continuing after death,
especially a work published after the
author’s death.
9. Challenge word
You must find a word that uses either root
word from this lesson. Please define it and
write an example sentence.