as in main
coming before all others in importance
the cardinal rule of medicine: do no harm
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Recent Examples of cardinal
Sort your laundry — but not by color The once cardinal rule of separating darks from whites before washing them has flown the coop.
—
The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
To secure such an outcome means breaking his cardinal rule.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
The Mutable Fire Sign Every sign is assigned a quality (cardinal, mutable, or fixed), which explains the sign's basic energy.
—Maressa Brown, InStyle, 15 Feb. 2026
While training at the FBI Academy at Quantico, I was required to learn and follow the cardinal safety rules, which include (1) treating all firearms as loaded, (2) keeping firearms pointed in a safe direction and (3) keeping one’s finger off the trigger until one is ready to press it.
—Luke William Hunt, The Conversation, 30 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cardinal
The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
To secure such an outcome means breaking his cardinal rule.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
The Mutable Fire Sign Every sign is assigned a quality (cardinal, mutable, or fixed), which explains the sign's basic energy.
—Maressa Brown, InStyle, 15 Feb. 2026
While training at the FBI Academy at Quantico, I was required to learn and follow the cardinal safety rules, which include (1) treating all firearms as loaded, (2) keeping firearms pointed in a safe direction and (3) keeping one’s finger off the trigger until one is ready to press it.
—Luke William Hunt, The Conversation, 30 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cardinal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cardinal
Adjective
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Shuttle services have been arranged to transport journalists between the media center and a hotel in the city’s main shopping mall.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
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But the leak appeared to get worse when the service module fired its main engine for the translunar injection burn on Day 2 of the flight, according to Amit Kshatriya, NASA’s associate administrator.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Persian is the primary language of Iran.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 Apr. 2026
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Seven bedrooms and seven bathrooms are spread across the house, including the primary bedroom suite.—
Demetrius Simms,
Robb Report,
16 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Romney and Abbott said leaders of the state's predominant religion, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, have taken steps to promote the lake's restoration.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
12 Apr. 2026
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Once a technically complicated legal rarity used to challenge improper incarcerations, habeas corpus petitions have become the predominant avenue for immigrants seeking release from detentions that increasingly end only with a deportation order.—
Seth Klamann,
Denver Post,
12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Instead, Trea Turner’s leadoff home run Wednesday night was all the Philadelphia Phillies managed against Imanaga in a dominant outing in the Cubs’ 11-2 victory to secure a series win.—
Meghan Montemurro,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Apr. 2026
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The Rapids, who have not participated in the competition since 2023, were dominant in the first half outside of a couple of key plays where Omaha could have pounced and stolen a goal.—
Braidon Nourse,
Denver Post,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Just last month it was reported that Cesar Chavez, the United Farm Workers organiser, raped women and girls, and Noam Chomsky—one of the left’s foremost intellectuals whose most popular book is called Manufacturing Consent—is right there on the Epstein private jet.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Apr. 2026
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The number of people with severe acute malnutrition, the most dangerous and deadly kind, is expected to increase to 800,000, the world’s foremost experts on food security, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, said in February.—
Samy Magdy,
Los Angeles Times,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Traditionally, the attorney general’s principal responsibility is to defend the state in civil lawsuits, when a criminal conviction is appealed or if a law is challenged.—
Orlando Sentinel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
11 Apr. 2026
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Instead of adjusting the bond’s principal value, inflation is incorporated into the bond’s rate of return.—
Colin Dodds,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
11 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The heat will linger into the weekend with our next big change coming on Sunday with a cold front bringing showers and MUCH cooler temps, especially into next Monday!—
Bill Kelly,
CBS News,
15 Apr. 2026
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Gucci's organic sales fell by 8%, a bigger drop than the 6% decline seen in a sell-side consensus cited by analysts.—
Elsa Ohlen,
CNBC,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The first offset was the development of nuclear weapons, which secured American dominance over a Soviet Union that could rely on mass mobilization.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
15 Apr. 2026
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System sales to China fell to 19% of overall sales in the first quarter, compared to 36% in the December quarter.—
Arjun Kharpal,
CNBC,
15 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cardinal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cardinal. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.
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