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Principal and principle are two of the most commonly confused words in the English language. People often confuse them because they are homophones, which means they sound alike but have different meanings. One is the head of a school, and the other is a rule.
Keep reading to find out which is which and take the quiz at the end to test your knowledge!
Table of Contents
Principal Meaning
Principal can be a noun or an adjective.
As a noun, a principal is a person with high authority or someone who is the leader; for example, the head of a school. It can also refer to a capital sum of money such as a debt.
As an adjective, principal means the “most important” or “chief.”
Examples of Principal in a Sentence
- The principal shook with anger when he saw the graffiti on the side of the school building.
- Principal Tanner was beloved by all the teachers and students.
- The principal ingredient in my pie is cooking apples.
Principle Meaning
Principle is a noun. It means a moral or legal rule, a code of conduct, or a fundamental law or doctrine. It can also mean a primary source or origin.
Examples of Principle in a Sentence
- They thought he was a man of principle, but he let them down when he stole the money from charity.
- There’s one principle we should all live by: don’t eat yellow snow.
- The scientific principles of how the internet works went over all their heads.
A Trick to Remember the Difference between Principal and Principle
If you were a bit nerdy in school, this trick to remembering the difference between principal and principle will surely be easy to remember!
Think “The princiPAL is my PAL.”
If you were a troublemaker in school, maybe you won’t find this an easy one to remember! I suppose you could change it to “The principal is NOT my pal.”
More Grammar Posts
Principal vs. Principle Quiz Questions
Choose the correct word to complete each sentence. The answers are at the bottom of this blog post.
- My favorite school principal/principle on TV was Mr. Belding from Saved by the Bell.
- If you don’t have principals/principles, you don’t have anything.
- The book’s title is Principals/Principles: A Personal Code to Live By.
- Many companies have adopted the principal/principle that the customer is always right.
- The men were slow to sign the treaty because they didn’t trust the principal/principle negotiator.
Final Thoughts on Principal vs. Principle
Every single grammar book and website covers the difference between principal and principle, but people still get them mixed up. So it’s no harm to bookmark this blog post to make sure you always have the answer right at your fingertips!
Remember, as a noun, a principal is a person with controlling authority like a school principal. As an adjective, it means most important. Principle can only be used as a noun, and it means a rule, code of conduct, or basic truth.
Principal vs. Principle Quiz Answers
- My favorite school principal on TV was Mr. Belding from Saved by the Bell.
- If you don’t have principles, you don’t have anything.
- The book’s title is Principles: A Personal Code to Live By.
- Many companies have adopted the principle that the customer is always right.
- The men were slow to sign the treaty because they didn’t trust the principal negotiator.
