FIRST PRINCIPLES

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does first principles mean? 

• FIRST PRINCIPLES (noun)
  The noun FIRST PRINCIPLES has 1 sense:

1. the elementary stages of any subject (usually plural)

  Familiarity information: FIRST PRINCIPLES used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FIRST PRINCIPLES (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The elementary stages of any subject (usually plural)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

ABC; ABC's; ABCs; alphabet; first principles; rudiments

Context example:

he mastered only the rudiments of geometry

Hypernyms ("first principles" is a kind of...):

basic principle; basics; bedrock; fundamental principle; fundamentals (principles from which other truths can be derived)

Domain usage:

plural; plural form (the form of a word that is used to denote more than one)

 Context examples 

Based on first principles, a U-shaped association is logical between most essential nutrients versus health outcomes.

(Moderate Carbohydrate Intake May be Best for Health, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Let any obstructing cause, no matter what, be removed in any way—even by death—and we fly back to first principles of hope and enjoyment.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Living, as I do, in an educated and scientific atmosphere, I could not have conceived that the first principles of zoology were so little known.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

But, instead of proposals for conquering that magnanimous nation, I rather wish they were in a capacity, or disposition, to send a sufficient number of their inhabitants for civilizing Europe, by teaching us the first principles of honour, justice, truth, temperance, public spirit, fortitude, chastity, friendship, benevolence, and fidelity.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)