as in star
the person who has the most important role in a play, movie, or TV show
my cousin is one of the principals in a new sitcom this fall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in main
coming before all others in importance
our principal reason for coming here today
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in chief
highest in rank or authority
the principal researcher in the company's chemical division
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of principal
Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 10 Apr. 2026
The bankruptcy court has approved $10 million to pursue legal claims against former Prospect principals, with Leonard Green and Prospect’s former top executives, Lee and Topper, as the big targets.
—Peter Elkind, ProPublica, 9 Apr. 2026
Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 10 Apr. 2026
Andrea Dussault is the founder and principal designer of Striped Lemon Design.
—Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for principal
Noun
Board members Bill Haley and Regina Garrett voiced opposition to the proposal Thursday night and suggested more money should go to teachers and principals.
—Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 10 Apr. 2026
The bankruptcy court has approved $10 million to pursue legal claims against former Prospect principals, with Leonard Green and Prospect’s former top executives, Lee and Topper, as the big targets.
—Peter Elkind, ProPublica, 9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
Roy Derks, a principal product manager at IBM, has OpenClaw set up on his home Mac mini and communicates with it through an app like WhatsApp or Telegram.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 10 Apr. 2026
Andrea Dussault is the founder and principal designer of Striped Lemon Design.
—Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for principal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for principal
Noun
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But Cukor, who hit his thirty-year up-or-out deadline without getting a star, had long since been removed to lucrative work in the private sector.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
15 Apr. 2026
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Sox fans are still waiting on Munetaka Murakami, the Japanese star whose slugging was going to make the fireworks budget increase exponentially, to start hitting with some regularity.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
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
-
During the call, chief operating officer Dan Janki ruled out short-term concerns about jet fuel shortages.—
Glenn Taylor,
Footwear News,
14 Apr. 2026
-
Outside of the labels, Moises AI, a non-generative AI music service that provides tools for musicians (like vocal isolation and mastering) appointed Charlie Puth as its chief music officer earlier this month, with the singer serving as a consultant for the company’s creative and product direction.—
Ethan Millman,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
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
-
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
-
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
-
Raman had a commanding lead in a field of five major candidates, with 33% of voters supporting her, while Bass trailed at 17%.—
Carlos De Loera,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Apr. 2026
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At 132 feet, the 40P is larger and more commanding, offering additional space and slightly flashier features.—
Rachel Cormack,
Robb Report,
25 Mar. 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
-
Although based on the Sanskrit Ramayana attributed to Valmiki, Tulsidas’s work is a theological reenvisioning in which Rama appears throughout as the supreme god rather than as a heroic human figure.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
9 Apr. 2026
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Demonstrators gather under a portrait of Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, in Tehran on Thursday.—
Katherine Doyle,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Principal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/principal. Accessed 15 Apr. 2026.
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