Original — Defs

01 a. Pertaining to the origin or beginning; preceding all others; first in order; primitive; primary; pristine; as, the original state of man; t…

1.
Pertaining to the origin or beginning; preceding all others; first in order; primitive; primary; pristine; as, the original state of man; the original laws of a country; the original inventor of a process.
“His form had yet not lost All her original brightness.” — Milton.
2.
Not copied, imitated, or translated; new; fresh; genuine; as, an original thought; an original process; the original text of Scripture.
3.
Having the power to suggest new thoughts or combinations of thought; inventive; as, an original genius.
4.
Before unused or unknown; new; as, a book full of original matter.

Phrases & compounds

Original sin — the first sin of Adam, as related to its consequences to his descendants of the human race; -- called also total depravity. See Calvinism.

02 n. Origin; commencement; source.

1.
Origin; commencement; source.
“It hath it original from much grief.” — Shak.

“And spangled heavens, a shining frame, Their great Original proclaim.” — Addison.
2.
That which precedes all others of its class; archetype; first copy; hence, an original work of art, manuscript, text, and the like, as distinguished from a copy, translation, etc.
“The Scriptures may be now read in their own original.” — Milton.
3.
An original thinker or writer; an originator.[R.]
“Men who are bad at copying, yet are good originals.” — C. G. Leland.
4.
A person of marked eccentricity.[Colloq.]
5.
The natural or wild species from which a domesticated or cultivated variety has been derived; as, the wolf is thought by some to be the original of the dog, the blackthorn the original of the plum.(Zool. & Bot.)