in principle

Idioms  

1. Fundamentally, in general, but not necessarily in all particulars. For example, The diplomats accepted the idea in principle but would rely on experts to work out all the details. [Early 1800s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

in principle

The leader of Catholics in England and Wales, Archbishop Richard Moth, called the proposal "wrong in principle" and "deeply flawed".

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

"But in principle, nothing prevents us from writing down physical equations for a larger number of dimensions -- five dimensions, forty-two dimensions, or even infinitely many."

From Science Daily ● Aug. 30, 2026

German business weekly WirtschaftsWoche reported that Porsche's works council, which represents staff interests, had agreed in principle with management to end Taycan production.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

Castlelake made a number of approaches for easyJet in recent weeks and the airline had agreed in principle to a more than $7 billion proposal before Apollo stepped in with a higher offer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

The latter notion—statistical testing of hypotheses—is simple in principle.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos