1. principle - Noun
2. principle - Verb
Beginning; commencement.
A source, or origin; that from which anything proceeds; fundamental substance or energy; primordial substance; ultimate element, or cause.
A fundamental truth; a comprehensive law or doctrine, from which others are derived, or on which others are founded; a general truth; an elementary proposition; a maxim; an axiom; a postulate.
A settled rule of action; a governing law of conduct; an opinion or belief which exercises a directing influence on the life and behavior; a rule (usually, a right rule) of conduct consistently directing one's actions; as, a person of no principle.
Any original inherent constituent which characterizes a substance, or gives it its essential properties, and which can usually be separated by analysis; -- applied especially to drugs, plant extracts, etc.
To equip with principles; to establish, or fix, in certain principles; to impress with any tenet, or rule of conduct, good or ill.
Source: Webster's dictionaryWe are all born for love. It is the principle of existence, and its only end. Benjamin Disraeli
I say that the strongest principle of growth lies in human choice. George Eliot
Here is my first principle of foreign policy: good government at home. William Ewart Gladstone
The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated. William James
In politics, a man must learn to rise above principle. American Proverb
I have no set principles; I make adaptability to all circumstances my principle. Japanese Proverb