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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The rooms There are a dozen entry-level rooms in the curvy main building, and several outrageously large residences and villas right on the beach.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
5 Apr. 2026
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For the tribe, its main objective is to repatriate the remains of their ancestors — a process that often involves gathering the remains and artifacts and burying them together in a spot on the site that cannot be disturbed.—
Lucas Robinson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
4 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The Wolves expect to challenge for Porter County Conference and postseason titles, and Powell is prepared to be a primary contributor.—
Michael Osipoff,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
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Industry leaders said some migrant workers employed by the textile companies were struggling to secure liquified petroleum gas, the primary cooking fuel.—
Priyanka Salve,
CNBC,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Warm and slightly muggy conditions will be the predominant theme for the Pirates home opener game this evening.—
Trey Fulbright,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
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First, the predominant previous assessment of many pundits that Gulf states’ collective large investments in defense were prestige driven — as opposed to a necessity — has fallen flat on its face.—
Faisal J. Abbas,
semafor.com,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Along with being the leading scorer, Punch was one of the best defenders in the Big 12 and formed a dominant duo with Xavier Edmonds.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
9 Apr. 2026
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Last year, his game continued to expand as a dominant two-way force who crushed huge minutes to incredible on-ice results and a Memorial Cup win.—
Scott Wheeler,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The filmmaking team that has worked on the last nine or 10 Saw films did an extraordinary job, [and] James Wan has become one of the foremost filmmakers in that space since working on [the first] Saw.—
David Canfield,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Apr. 2026
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And of course, the foremost reason is nobody could image into the brain before, until photon microscopy became available.—
Amanda Erickson,
STAT,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Dovlation is proud of what’s been accomplished during his 10-year tenture at the school, five as principal, following another five as vice principal.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
4 Apr. 2026
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Mimi Meacham is the founder and principal designer of Marian Louise Design, based in Houston.—
Kristina McGuirk,
Better Homes & Gardens,
4 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The National Park Service long believed the 2,990-acre island was big enough to support 130 horses, but that has changed.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Apr. 2026
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What is expected to be the biggest gathering of possible Democratic 2028 presidential hopefuls is set to happen at the convention for the National Action Network, an organization dedicated to fighting for civil rights and equality.—
Hannah Demissie,
ABC News,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Ben Saraf, making his first start since March 25, added eight early points, and the Nets closed the quarter on a 10-0 run to take a 30-29 lead into the second.—
C.J. Holmes,
New York Daily News,
8 Apr. 2026
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The Dilworth-South End border along the railroad back in 1988 was not the safest place; Thai Taste was robbed in its first six months of operations, and someone even came into the dining room and stole a customer’s purse during service.—
Timothy DePeugh,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cardinal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cardinal. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.
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