ALL meanings of principles
prin·ci·ple
P p - noun principles an accepted or professed rule of action or conduct: a person of good moral principles. 1
- noun principles a fundamental, primary, or general law or truth from which others are derived: the principles of modern physics. 1
- noun principles a fundamental doctrine or tenet; a distinctive ruling opinion: the principles of the Stoics. 1
- noun principles principles, a personal or specific basis of conduct or management: to adhere to one's principles; a kindergarten run on modern principles. 1
- noun principles guiding sense of the requirements and obligations of right conduct: a person of principle. 1
- noun principles an adopted rule or method for application in action: a working principle for general use. 1
- noun principles a rule or law exemplified in natural phenomena, the construction or operation of a machine, the working of a system, or the like: the principle of capillary attraction. 1
- noun principles the method of formation, operation, or procedure exhibited in a given case: a community organized on the patriarchal principle. 1
- noun principles a determining characteristic of something; essential quality. 1
- noun principles an originating or actuating agency or force: growth is the principle of life. 1
- noun principles an actuating agency in the mind or character, as an instinct, faculty, or natural tendency: the principles of human behavior. 1
- noun principles Chemistry. a constituent of a substance, especially one giving to it some distinctive quality or effect. 1
- noun principles Obsolete. beginning or commencement. 1
- idioms principles in principle, in essence or substance; fundamentally: to accept a plan in principle. 1
- idioms principles on principle, according to personal rules for right conduct; as a matter of moral principle: He refused on principle to agree to the terms of the treaty. according to a fixed rule, method, or practice: He drank hot milk every night on principle. 1
- noun plural principles a set of standards or rules of personal conduct 0