primer

from The Century Dictionary.

• noun One who or that which primes.
• noun A small powder-horn containing fine powder used for priming.
• noun Any one of many cerambycid beetles whose larvæ bore into the twigs of various trees, weakening them and causing them to fall off as if pruned.
• First; original; primary.
• noun A first book; a small elementary book of instruction.
• noun Specifically (ecclesiastical), in England, both before and after the Reformation, a book of private devotions, especially one authorized by the church and partially or wholly in the vernacular, containing devotions for the hours, the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, the Ten Commandments. certain psalms, instruction as to elements of Christian knowledge, etc. Primers are extant dating from the fourteenth century and earlier. A reformed primer was set forth under Henry VIII. in 1545, and continued in use with alterations till 1575. A new series of primers began in 1553, and unauthorized primers were also often issued. Books of devotion closely resembling the old primers in contents and character are extensively used among Anglicans at the present day.
• noun This is Long Primer type.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• noun One who, or that which, primes.
• adjective obsolete First; original; primary.
• adjective (O. Eng. Law) a fine due to the king on the writ or commencement of a suit by fine.
• adjective (Feudal Law) the right of the king, when a tenant in capite died seized of a knight's fee, to receive of the heir, if of full age, one year's profits of the land if in possession, and half a year's profits if the land was in reversion expectant on an estate for life; -- now abolished.
• noun Originally, a small prayer book for church service, containing the little office of the Virgin Mary; also, a work of elementary religious instruction.
• noun A small elementary book for teaching children to read; a reading or spelling book for a beginner.
• noun (Print.) A kind of type, of which there are two species; one, called long primer, intermediate in size between bourgeois and small pica [see Long primer]; the other, called great primer, larger than pica.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun An elementary textbook introducing a topic, or teaching basic concepts.
• noun An elementary book for teaching children to learn the alphabet and to read, write and spell.
• noun biology A single-stranded nucleic acid molecule required for the initiation of replication of a DNA molecule.
• noun Any substance used to start a fire.
• noun A small charge that burns furiously when given sufficient electrical current (Explosive primer) or when struck with force (percussion caps) that ignites the main combustable substances in explosives or ammunition.
• noun A layer of paint designed to underlay a topcoat, used to enhance the adhesion and durability of the topcoat and help in protection of the surface.
• noun A device used to circulate gasoline into the ignition chamber of an engine.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun any igniter that is used to initiate the burning of a propellant
• noun an introductory textbook
• noun the first or preliminary coat of paint or size applied to a surface