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]

---

Example Sentences

Campaigners celebrated last May after a regional court in northern Germany ruled that companies could in principle be sued over the consequences of their emissions.

From Barron's • Mar. 23, 2026

The two sides told a judge on Monday that they had reached a "settlement in principle", according to court filings.

From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026

“Europe is the biggest market for China, so in principle they should be in a good negotiating position,” said Dirk Schumacher, chief economist at the German state-owned KfW bank.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 25, 2026

The agreement in principle will provide Spirit with the money to finalize its restructuring and make changes in its fleet, network and cost structure.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 24, 2026

Science is thus a cross-cultural language which any culture can in principle learn to speak, and which any technologically sophisticated culture will already have learnt to speak.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton