Principal versus Principle – What’s the Gist?
Both words can function as nouns, but principal has the added function of an adjective.
- Principle has to do with the basic beliefs that individuals have.
- Principal refers to a member of the local administration in a school, or the something that is the first order of importance.
Continue reading for more information.
How to Use Principal in a Sentence
Principal definition. Principal refers to a person who is considered a part of a school’s administrative staff; teachers and other faculty members answer to the principal, as he or she is the building supervisor.
For example,
- The principal led the students to the gym for the Veteran’s Day program.
- A school is governed by the teachers and principals who are tasked with educating children.
- The principal is tasked with not only making sure the daily operations of a school are running smoothly, but also with addressing disciplinary issues.
As you can see, a principal refers a person rather than an idea. Whereas principle is an abstract noun, principal refers to a flesh-and-blood human, which makes it a concrete noun.
Principal also has additional meanings in finance and accounting. The principal of a loan refers to the original amount of money that someone has invested or lent.
For example,
- I have hardly paid down any of the principal of my mortgage.
As an adjective, principal refers to something that is the first order or importance.
- The principal reason for my move was the high cost of living.
How to Use Principle in a Sentence
Principle definition. Principle refers to the foundational beliefs that individuals have. The word is typically an abstract noun referring to these intangible ideas that describe what is important to a person.
Principle can also refer to a scientific theory.
For example,
- One of the principle beliefs of most religions has to do with how we should treat others.
- Matt’s chief principle is his devotion to working hard each day.
- Stephen Hawking proved several principles regarding black holes.
Outside Examples of Principle and Principal
- Ambition has always trumped principle and few fervent Brexiters are confident of him. Washington Post
- Hartfield said Uber does not oppose taxing its services in principle, but wants such levies to be fair to and target legitimate public concerns such as congestion or raising money for public transportation. Chicago Times
- The Illinois Fraternal Order of Police on Friday said the group now agrees in principle on proposed amendments that they requested to address some of their concerns. Chicago Times
- Also not a spoiler, I hope, is the fact that Mr. Ross is a retired high school principal who worked in schools in Queens, Great Neck and Plainview, N.Y., which gives the theme a memoir-ish quality. New York Times
Phrases that Use Principal and Principle
Two phrases that one might hear regarding the word principle might have to do with “acting on (one’s) principle” or refusing to act in a certain way “as a matter of principle.”
How to Remember These Words
Perhaps one of the easiest ways to remember when to use principle or principal is to consider to whom or what you’re referring.
- Principles have to do with ideals or beliefs, which are abstract nouns that cannot be physically touched.
- A principal is a person, a concrete noun that can be touched by the speaker.
Another way to remember how to spell principal when you want to refer to a person is to think to yourself, “The princiPAL is my PAL.” Only a person can be a pal or friend, so this can help you to remember not only the definition of principal, but also how to spell it so that the correct word is used.
Article Summary
Is principle or principal correct? These homophones might sound the same, but they definitely do not have the same meaning. They are never interchangeable.
- A principle is an idea or belief; it is abstract, meaning that it cannot be seen or touched.
- A principal is a person who leads a school, particularly in one school building. It has additional meanings in finance and can be a noun or adjective.