Primer vs. Foundation — What's the Difference?

A substance used as a preparatory coat on wood, metal, or canvas, especially to prevent the absorption of subsequent layers of paint or the development of rust

The lowest load-bearing part of a building, typically below ground level

A cap or cylinder containing a compound which responds to friction or an electrical impulse and ignites the charge in a cartridge or explosive

An underlying basis or principle

A small pump for pumping fuel to prime an internal combustion engine, especially in an aircraft

The action of establishing an institution or organization

A molecule that serves as a starting material for a polymerization process

The act of founding, especially the establishment of an institution with provisions for future maintenance.

An elementary textbook that serves as an introduction to a subject of study or is used for teaching children to read

(Architecture) A wall or other structure, as of concrete or masonry, usually extending below ground level and forming the base upon which a building rests.

An elementary textbook for teaching children to read.

Something that gives rise to or supports something else.

A book that covers the basic elements of a subject.

The act of founding, fixing, establishing, or beginning to erect.

A cap or tube containing a small amount of explosive used to detonate the main explosive charge of a firearm or mine.

That upon which anything is founded; that on which anything stands, and by which it is supported; the lowest and supporting layer of a superstructure; underbuilding.

An undercoat of paint or size applied to prepare a surface, as for painting.

(figurative) The result of the work to begin something; that which stabilizes and allows an enterprise or system to develop.

(Genetics) A segment of DNA or RNA that is complementary to a given DNA sequence and that is needed to initiate replication by DNA polymerase.

(card games) In solitaire or patience games, one of the piles of cards that the player attempts to build, usually holding all cards of a suit in ascending order.

A prayer or devotional book intended for laity, initially an abridgment of the breviary and manual including the hours of the Virgin Mary, 15 gradual and 7 penitential psalms, the litany, the placebo and dirige forming the office of the dead, and the commendations.

(architecture) The lowest and supporting part or member of a wall, including the base course and footing courses; in a frame house, the whole substructure of masonry.

Any of various similar works issued in England for private prayer in accordance with the Book of Common Prayer.

A donation or legacy appropriated to support a charitable institution, and constituting a permanent fund; endowment.

A children's book intended to teach literacy: how to read, write, and spell.

That which is founded, or established by endowment; an endowed institution or charity.

An introductory text on any subject, particularly basic concepts.

(cosmetics) Cosmetic cream roughly skin-colored, designed to make the face appear uniform in color and texture.

(New Zealand) An elementary school class; an elementary school student. (No longer used.)

A basis for social bodies or intellectual disciplines.

Any substance or device, such as priming wire or blasting cap, used to ignite gunpowder or other explosive.

The act of founding, fixing, establishing, or beginning to erect.

A person who primes explosives.

That upon which anything is founded; that on which anything stands, and by which it is supported; the lowest and supporting layer of a superstructure; groundwork; basis.

A substance used to prime wood, metal, etc. in preparation for painting.

A donation or legacy appropriated to support a charitable institution, and constituting a permanent fund; endowment.

A layer of such a substance.

That which is founded, or established by endowment; an endowed institution or charity; as, the Ford Foundation.

A layer of makeup that goes beneath the foundation; undermakeup.

The basis on which something is grounded;

A person who primes wood, metal, etc.

An institution supported by an endowment

A molecule which initiates the synthesis of an enzyme, (especially) a single-stranded nucleic acid molecule which initiates DNA replication.

The fundamental assumptions from which something is begun or developed or calculated or explained;

A pheromone which interacts first with the endocrine system.

Lowest support of a structure;

A device used to prime an internal combustion engine with gasoline, (especially) in airplanes.

Education or instruction in the fundamentals of a field of knowledge;

A person who prunes trees.

A woman's undergarment worn to give shape to the contours of the body

(obsolete) First in time, initial, early.

The act of starting something for the first time; introducing something new;

(obsolete) First in importance, premier.

First in position, foremost.

One who, or that which, primes

Originally, a small prayer book for church service, containing the little office of the Virgin Mary; also, a work of elementary religious instruction.

A small elementary book for teaching children to read; a reading or spelling book for a beginner.

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.

First; original; primary.

An introductory textbook

Any igniter that is used to initiate the burning of a propellant

The first or preliminary coat of paint or size applied to a surface