as in rule
something (such as a belief or value) that helps a person know what is right and wrong and that influences their actions
He refused to participate on principle. It is against her principles to steal.
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Recent Examples of principle
Numan’s career and his odyssey back from near obscurity to another career high in his mid-sixties hold various lessons for business owners about self-belief and sticking to your principles, innovation and the value of a unique value proposition.
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Paul Fitzgerald, Rolling Stone, 12 Aug. 2025
Trump’s friend Rudy Giuliani, after his successful leadership as mayor of New York during 9/11, wrote a compelling treatise on leadership and offered 14 principles for would-be leaders.
—Michael Eric Siegel, Baltimore Sun, 12 Aug. 2025
That means improving scalability and speed without sacrificing its core principles of decentralization and security — and ideally making those properties even stronger.
—Mackenzie Sigalos, CNBC, 2 Aug. 2025
Integrate impact considerations into core business processes rather than treating social benefit as an add-on, making prosocial principles fundamental to system design and operation.
—Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for principle
Paul Fitzgerald, Rolling Stone, 12 Aug. 2025
Trump’s friend Rudy Giuliani, after his successful leadership as mayor of New York during 9/11, wrote a compelling treatise on leadership and offered 14 principles for would-be leaders.
—Michael Eric Siegel, Baltimore Sun, 12 Aug. 2025
That means improving scalability and speed without sacrificing its core principles of decentralization and security — and ideally making those properties even stronger.
—Mackenzie Sigalos, CNBC, 2 Aug. 2025
Integrate impact considerations into core business processes rather than treating social benefit as an add-on, making prosocial principles fundamental to system design and operation.
—Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for principle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for principle
Noun
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Military planners aimed to mitigate these risks with dress rehearsals at a base in Los Alamitos, California, and training on rules of force, according to the July 1 planning document.—
Tom Hals,
USA Today,
30 Aug. 2025
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These rules are only in place for students in the Mason School district and not visiting teams.—
Jennie Key,
The Enquirer,
30 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Managers, in contrast, are frequently regarded as productivity experts who nurture the organizational structure, establish systems and processes, fulfill the mission statement, uphold quality standards, develop talent, organize teams, and plan budgets.—
Mark LaSota,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
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This elite group of experts plays a pivotal role in steering the global direction of AI in consumer technology, influencing research priorities, setting standards, and shaping innovations that will define the next generation of intelligent systems worldwide and touch billions of lives.—
Malana VanTyler,
USA Today,
30 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Sheetz to replace Fraser bank, Roseville church in southeast Michigan expansion Historically, Michigan has some of the weakest public ethics laws in the country.—
Dave Boucher,
Freep.com,
24 Aug. 2025
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That law is among several concerns about school curriculum across the state, according to a prominent union, the Texas American Federation of Teachers.—
Zulekha Nathoo,
USA Today,
23 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Investing involves risk and your investment may lose value.—
Connie Etemadi,
USA Today,
30 Aug. 2025
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Barring catastrophic injury luck, Green Bay's draft picks won't hold much value.—
Kevin McCormick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Principle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/principle. Accessed 3 Sep. 2025.
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