principled
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of principled
Explanation
If you decide to take a lower grade rather than cheat on a test, you are making a principled decision, or one that is based on moral rightness. Most people have a set of principles or basic moral rules that they follow. These might include not stealing, not cheating, and treating people as you would like to be treated. Decisions made following these rules are principled, as are people who follow their principles often. If you take a principled stance on censorship, your defend or refute it actively based on your convictions.
Vocabulary lists containing principled
President Trump's Second State of the Union Address (2019)
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They Called Us Enemy
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Obama's State of the Union Address, 2014
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The first and perhaps most important lesson,” the authors write, “is that principled cultures begin with leaders at every level.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Her family described her as "kind, principled and selfless".
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
Or is it what we call avoidance when we want avoidance to sound principled?
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
So I think it’s important not to say this is a principled court that is supportive of executive power.
From Slate ● Jul. 6, 2026
But the joke never went any further, because Annie didn’t have an ID and the strangely principled clerk wouldn’t even pull it out from behind the counter for her to inspect.
From "We'll Fly Away" by Bryan Bliss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
