What does "principal" mean?
The money originally invested or loaned, on which basis interest and returns are calculated.
Principal
/ˈpɹɪnsɪpəl/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The money originally invested or loaned, on which basis interest and returns are calculated.
- Grammar: principal is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: head, a per se, academic community leaders, academic dean.
- Useful contrasts: by, ancillary, auxiliary cohort.
- Usage evidence: The principal severely reproved the students whenever they made a mess in the hallway.
How to use "principal"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "principal" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "principal" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "principal" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "principal" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "principal" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "head" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "principal", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The money originally invested or loaned, on which basis interest and returns are calculated. uncountable
"A portion of your mortgage payment goes to reduce the principal, and the rest covers interest."
- 2 the major party to a financial transaction at a stock exchange; buys and sells for their own account wordnet
- 3 The chief administrator of a school. Australia, Canada, New-Zealand, Philippines, US, countable, uncountable
"The important administrative figure to the teacher is the school principal."
- 4 the educator who has executive authority for a school wordnet
- 5 The chief executive and chief academic officer of a university or college. Canada, UK, countable, uncountable
"1967, University of Edinburgh Graduates′ Association, University of Edinburgh Journal, Volumes 23-24, page 314, Unlike the students, Principal Robertson, who now resided almost alone in the College, continued to use the accustomed route on his visits to the Old Town; and it “became the joke of the day that from being the principal gate it had become only a gate for the Principal.”⁵"
Show 16 more definitions
- 6 (criminal law) any person involved in a criminal offense, regardless of whether the person profits from such involvement wordnet
- 7 A legal person that authorizes another (the agent) to act on their behalf; or on whose behalf an agent or gestor in a negotiorum gestio acts. countable, uncountable
"When an attorney represents a client, the client is the principal who permits the attorney, the client′s agent, to act on the client′s behalf."
- 8 an actor who plays a principal role wordnet
- 9 The primary participant in a crime. countable, uncountable
"The accessories may be prosecuted, tried and punished, though the principal has not been prosecuted or has been acquitted."
- 10 capital as contrasted with the income derived from it wordnet
- 11 Either party in a duel. countable, uncountable
"The old man raised his arm as though it had been palsied, and fired, of course without effect. The other principal immediately deloped, much to the satisfaction of my friend and all present."
- 12 the original amount of a debt on which interest is calculated wordnet
- 13 A partner or owner of a business. Canada, US, countable, uncountable
- 14 A type of stop on a pipe organ consisting of flue pipes with a bright tonal quality. They are also sometimes referred to as a diapason. countable, uncountable
- 15 The construction that gives shape and strength to a roof, generally a truss of timber or iron; or, loosely, the most important member of a piece of framing. countable, uncountable
- 16 The first two long feathers of a hawk's wing. countable, uncountable
"a birde whose principals be scarce growne out"
- 17 One of the turrets or pinnacles of waxwork and tapers with which the posts and centre of a funeral hearse were formerly crowned countable, uncountable
- 18 An essential point or rule; a principle. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"Set two classes of monitors to question each other; so that one may try to outquestion the other. Explain to them the principal of every subject they have to teach."
- 19 A dancer at the highest rank within a professional dance company, particularly a ballet company. countable, uncountable
- 20 A security principal. countable, uncountable
- 21 A main character or lead actor. countable, uncountable
"Silverberg also gives the reader reader some excellent character insight; deep probes into the minds of all the principals bring the reader closer to the persons involved than might be thought possible with the plot so far removed from the realm of normality."
Adjective
- 1 Primary; most important; first level in importance.
"Smith is the principal architect of this design."
- 2 Of or relating to a prince; princely. Latinism, obsolete
"But walkt at will, and wandred to and fro, / In the pride of his freedome principall."
- 3 Chosen or assumed among a branch of possible values of a multi-valued function so that the function is single-valued.
"Two is the principal square root of 4. Both −2 and +2 are square roots of 4."
Adjective
- 1 most important element wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"The principal severely reproved the students whenever they made a mess in the hallway."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "principal"?
Common synonyms include: head, a per se, academic community leaders, academic dean, ace, administration.
How do you use "principal" in a sentence?
The principal severely reproved the students whenever they made a mess in the hallway.
How do you pronounce "principal"?
Pronounced /ˈpɹɪnsɪpəl/.
Etymology
From Middle English principal, from Old French principal, from Latin prīncipālis.