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Maruko54 Posted 12 years ago
Vocabulary

Does the word "primitive" have negative meanings?

"Some villages are found in dense forests of Amazon. People there have primitive lifestyle."
Is this sentence rude?

I think "primitive" is a neutral word just meaning "ancient," "simple," "not elegant but powerful." Am I wrong?
  

Top answer

The opposite of primitive is advanced or sophisticated . In some people's opinions, " primitive " is a judgement, and it can be derogatory. These are not offensive: They live off the land and its resources as their ancestors did.

— AlpheccaStars

  • The opposite of primitive is advanced or sophisticated .
  • In some people's opinions, " primitive " is a judgement, and it can be derogatory.
  • These are not offensive: They live off the land and its resources as their ancestors did.
  • They are masters of their environment.
  • They live the lifestyle of hunter-gatherers.
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2 Answers
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The opposite of primitive is advanced or sophisticated.
In some people's opinions, "primitive" is a judgement, and it can be derogatory.

These are not offensive:
They live off the land and its resources as their ancestors did.
They are masters of their environment.
They live the lifestyle of hunter-gatherers.
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I see. So, it's better to avoid using this word. I didn't know that. Thank you!

> They live off the land and its resources as their ancestors did.
> They are masters of their environment.
> They live the lifestyle of hunter-gatherers.

Those expressions are very helpful to me. Thank you so much.
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