principal and principle
Principal means main.
A principal is the head (of a department).
Principle means general law or code of conduct.
A principal is the head (of a department).
Principle means general law or code of conduct.
Writers occasionally confuse the words principal and principle.
Principal
In its most common role, principal is an adjective meaning main or key.Examples:
- The principal objective is to make a profit.
(The adjective principal modifies the noun objective.) - The inspector highlighted my principal concern in his opening sentence.
(principal = main or key)
(principal = main or key)
- Here comes the principal.
(principal = head teacher)
- The allegations against the former principal were that he not only allowed the cage
fights to take place, but he also he egged on the participants.
Principle
The word principle is a noun. It has a range of meanings, including rule, belief, tenet and theory. In general, principle offers the idea of general law or code of conduct.- No! It is against my principles!
- That is a great idea in principle.
- Those are my principles. If you don't like them,
I have others.
(Groucho Marx quotation)
- You could
strengthen your argument by appealing to more general
principles. - He applied the
Aufbau principal to determine the electron configuration of the silicon.
(should be principle / principle = theory or general law)
A Quick Test
A1
If you imagine that the l on the end of principal looks like a 1, then the last two letters become A1. This may help you to remember that principal denotes the most important or main.
If you imagine that the l on the end of principal looks like a 1, then the last two letters become A1. This may help you to remember that principal denotes the most important or main.
- My principal concern is the safety of the dove.
(my A1 concern, i.e., main concern)
- You can explain
your absence to the principal.
(to the A1, i.e., the most important person in the department)
PRINCIPAL AND MONEY
When referring to a loan, the principal (or principal sum) is the original amount of a debt or investment on which interest is calculated.
When referring to a loan, the principal (or principal sum) is the original amount of a debt or investment on which interest is calculated.
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