HOW TO PRONOUNCE
elementary
/ˌɛləˈmɛntəɹi/
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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:57
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What does elementary mean?
adjective
- Relating to the basic, essential or fundamental part of something.
- Very simple.
- Relating to an elementary school.
More meanings (10)
adjective
- Fundamental: serving as a building block for more complicated structures or processes.
- Relating to a subatomic particle.
- Involving only a single reaction step and transition state.
- 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).
- Arising from Vieta's formulas; see Elementary symmetric polynomial on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- Straightforward, employing only basic techniques; not requiring substantial knowledge (of some particular domain, object, etc.).
- 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.
noun
- (informal) Ellipsis of elementary school.
- A supernatural being associated with the elements.
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/ˌɛləˈmɛntəɹi/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
If there had not been, Theron felt that the mere elementary demands of self-defence would have justified his use of strategy.
I select this mainly because it involves only elementary principles, requires no abstruse reasoning, and because all controversy regarding it is ended.
More book examples (3)
From our standpoint that is in a hopeless intellectual darkness, for they know absolutely nothing of the most elementary subjects of knowledge.
He gave himself the very best elementary preparation which a literary man can have,--a thorough course in mathematics and the physical sciences.
Later on, Lilienthal abandoned the glider, or elementary form of monoplane, and adopted a system of superposed planes, corresponding to the modern biplane.