as in principle
formal
a statement or well-known remark that expresses an important idea, observation, or opinion
A doctor must follow the dictum of "First, do no harm."
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Recent Examples of dictum
Smith co-wrote six of the 18 songs — his road schedule kept him from writing more, but, as the Nashville dictum goes, the best song always wins.
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Melinda Newman, Billboard, 4 Oct. 2024
However, dictums from the C-suite won’t work to sustain this ideal; shows of authority make employees feel more cautious.
—Michael Morris, Fortune, 30 Sep. 2024
Was this dictum merely a face-saving gesture for the Chinese Communist Party?
—Aja Romano, Vox, 4 Sep. 2024
Queen Mathilde certainly followed suit with the dictum of Giorgio Armani Privé’s collection and made this piece from the spring 2024 couture designs her own.
—Julia Teti, WWD, 15 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for dictum 
Melinda Newman, Billboard, 4 Oct. 2024
However, dictums from the C-suite won’t work to sustain this ideal; shows of authority make employees feel more cautious.
—Michael Morris, Fortune, 30 Sep. 2024
Was this dictum merely a face-saving gesture for the Chinese Communist Party?
—Aja Romano, Vox, 4 Sep. 2024
Queen Mathilde certainly followed suit with the dictum of Giorgio Armani Privé’s collection and made this piece from the spring 2024 couture designs her own.
—Julia Teti, WWD, 15 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for dictum
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dictum
Noun
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Embracing business principles shouldn’t mean losing sight of your academic mission.Elise Awwad, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025
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An even higher percentage (about 90 percent) say that the use of artificial intelligence for wildlife identification violates fair-chase principles, and fully 90 percent say that drones violate fair-chase ethics and are opposed to their use in big-game hunting.Andrew McKean, Outdoor Life, 10 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Raimondo said that the rule is very complex and, because of that, the comment period is 120 days, longer than usual timeline for rule-making.Michelle Stoddart, ABC News, 13 Jan. 2025
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What's inside: The rule will create a new global licensing system for the most advanced AI technology exports.Maria Curi, Axios, 13 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Courts in at least five states – Montana, New York, Washington, Vermont and Oregon – have rejected the open fields doctrine, finding it’s not supported by their state constitutions.Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 16 Jan. 2025
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OpenAI argued that the fair use doctrine protects them.Brittney Melton, NPR, 15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Sports and music are both proof points and beneficiaries of this axiom.Dr. Marcus Collins, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
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Those who forget history, the old axiom posits, are doomed to repeat it.Ilan Berman, Foreign Affairs, 24 Apr. 2016
Noun
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Trump, in 2017, denounced prior uses of the 1906 law to protect land and drastically reduced the size of several national monuments during his first term.Fritz Farrow, ABC News, 7 Jan. 2025
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These laws, along with the industry’s powerful lobby, further entangled private prisons with federal immigration policy.Laura Hernandez, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Prior to the 2023 season, Major League Baseball announced a spate of rules designed to make stealing bases easier — instituting penalties for pitchers who take too much time between pitches, and fail to pick off a runner within three attempts.Paul Du Quenoy, Newsweek, 10 Jan. 2025
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Airlines and airports handle security breaches on a case-by-case basis, investigating and addressing any lapses.Zach Wichter, USA TODAY, 10 Jan. 2025
Noun
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This maxim holds just as true in cyber security as in sports.Phillimon Zongo, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024
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There’s the old maxim that country music more than any other genre is about storytelling.Chris Willman, Variety, 5 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Dictum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dictum. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
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