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Literary notes about principal (AI summary)

The term “principal” appears in literature with a remarkable range of meanings, denoting the foremost, most important, or chief element in a given context. It frequently designates the central part of a system or entity—for instance, signifying the chief components of language or structure ([1], [2]) and marking the primary features in discussions ranging from administrative divisions ([3], [4]) to natural phenomena ([5], [6]). Moreover, the word often highlights the main reason or cause behind events or actions, as when a pivotal motive is identified or a core detail in a narrative is emphasized ([7], [8]). Whether describing the leader of an institution or the essential part of an argument, “principal” serves as a versatile marker of primacy throughout literary discourse ([9], [10]).
  1. principal part, chief part, main part, greater part, major part, best part, essential part; bulk, mass &c. (whole) 50.
    — from Roget's Thesaurus by Peter Mark Roget
  2. I. The principal parts of root verbs and of verbs in -ere are formed in a variety of ways and are best learned separately for every verb ( 922-986 ).
    — from A Latin Grammar for Schools and Colleges by George Martin Lane
  3. There is not a female principal in Brooklyn or New York whose salary exceeds the half of that of the male principals.
    — from The Life and Work of Susan B. Anthony (Volume 1 of 2) by Ida Husted Harper
  4. The following are the principal modes of formally addressing titled personages or persons holding official rank in Great Britain:— The King or Queen.
    — from The New Gresham Encyclopedia. A to Amide by Various
  5. The principal valleys of the Alps run mostly in a direction nearly parallel with the principal ranges, and therefore east and west.
    — from The New Gresham Encyclopedia. A to Amide by Various
  6. It is the principal source of the Abana river—only one-half mile down to where it joins.
    — from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain
  7. And short-sighted writers admire his deeds from one point of view and from another condemn the principal cause of them.
    — from The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli
  8. The principal object, as before, was to secure an heir to sacrifice to the spirits of deceased progenitors.
    — from Myths and Legends of China by E. T. C. Werner
  9. I refer to the Rev. Dr. Hollis B. Frissell, now the Principal of the Hampton Institute, and General Armstrong's successor.
    — from Up from Slavery: An Autobiography by Booker T. Washington
  10. The principal construction, however, is always the same, although their shape admits of some variation.
    — from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson

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