# principal

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ˈpɹɪn.sɪ.pəl/ · frequency rank #2,907

## Definitions
1. Primary; most important; first level in importance.
2. Of or relating to a prince; princely.
3. Chosen or assumed among a branch of possible values of a multi-valued function so that the function is single-valued.

## Etymology
From Middle English principal, from Old French principal, from Latin prīncipālis.

## Easily confused with
- **principle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/principal-vs-principle)
- **principally** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/principal-vs-principally)

## Common misspellings (14)
`pirncipal`, `pprincipal`, `pricnipal`, `princcipal`, `princiapl`, `principall`, `principla`, `princippal`, `princpial`, `prinicpal`, `prinncipal`, `prnicipal`, `prrincipal`, `rpincipal`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/principal