rudimentary.

Existing in a simple, incomplete, or early form.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• rudimentary knowledge
• rudimentary system

On the page

The settlement had only a rudimentary drainage system.

Usage notes

Primary category: academic / formal. Forms: Comparative more rudimentary; superlative most rudimentary when comparison is meaningful. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: analysis, qualification. Commonness: moderately common.