principal

Academic Word List, sublist 4.

About 45.68 uses per million words.

Meaning

1. adjective Primary; most important; first level in importance.

   Smith is the principal architect of this design.

2. adjective Of or relating to a prince; princely.
3. adjective Chosen or assumed among a branch of possible values of a multi-valued function so that the function is single-valued.

   Two is the principal square root of 4. Both −2 and +2 are square roots of 4.

4. noun The money originally invested or loaned, on which basis interest and returns are calculated.

   A portion of your mortgage payment goes to reduce the principal, and the rest covers interest.

5. noun The chief administrator of a school.
6. noun The chief executive and chief academic officer of a university or college.
7. noun A legal person that authorizes another (the agent) to act on their behalf; or on whose behalf an agent or gestor in a negotiorum gestio acts.

   When an attorney represents a client, the client is the principal who permits the attorney, the client′s agent, to act on the client′s behalf.

8. noun The primary participant in a crime.

Similar words

primary main important chief corpus head teacher dealer head star lead

Often followed by

of and act source part components or is object

Word family

principales principally principals principalship principalships