as in chiefly
for the most part
the tourists were principally concerned with the quantity of the food, and only secondarily with the quality
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Recent Examples of principally
The story is principally set early in 1965, on the stark desert island of Qeshm, in the Strait of Hormuz.
—
Richard Brody, New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2026
But the job of mayor of a big city like Chicago is principally a management task.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 26 Mar. 2026
To ramp up solar power even faster than Cuba did last year, LeoGrande said other countries, principally China, would have to be willing to double or more their provision of such equipment.
—ABC News, 16 Mar. 2026
Rising electricity prices are being driven principally by rising prices for fossil fuels, especially natural gas.
—Liz Krueger, New York Daily News, 12 Mar. 2026
The lawsuit notes that Lipari, as well as the individuals principally involved in Lipari Brothers’ operations, are white.
—Robert A. Cronkleton
march 5, Kansas City Star, 5 Mar. 2026
These are not exclusive to Helmand Province but principally focused on that province.
—Josh Meyer, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
This rising use of AI has principally been spurred by the evolving advances and widespread adoption of generative AI.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 30 Jan. 2026
The most common type of gallstone consists principally of cholesterol.
—Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Jan. 2026
Richard Brody, New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2026
But the job of mayor of a big city like Chicago is principally a management task.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 26 Mar. 2026
To ramp up solar power even faster than Cuba did last year, LeoGrande said other countries, principally China, would have to be willing to double or more their provision of such equipment.
—ABC News, 16 Mar. 2026
Rising electricity prices are being driven principally by rising prices for fossil fuels, especially natural gas.
—Liz Krueger, New York Daily News, 12 Mar. 2026
The lawsuit notes that Lipari, as well as the individuals principally involved in Lipari Brothers’ operations, are white.
—Robert A. Cronkleton
march 5, Kansas City Star, 5 Mar. 2026
These are not exclusive to Helmand Province but principally focused on that province.
—Josh Meyer, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
This rising use of AI has principally been spurred by the evolving advances and widespread adoption of generative AI.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 30 Jan. 2026
The most common type of gallstone consists principally of cholesterol.
—Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for principally
Adverb
-
Control over the strait is now the regime’s greatest source of leverage, and the war’s outcome will depend chiefly on whether Iran still holds sway over it, and thus global energy markets.—
Tom Chivers,
semafor.com,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Those who read chiefly for pleasure are more comfortable letting details blur.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
Golden State’s run came mainly from expansion draft selections as players like Burton, Thornton and Zandalasini all shined in bigger roles.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
The population is increasing, mainly because they were protected (in) 1994.—
Paris Barraza,
USA Today,
3 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
The community Fogo Island Inn sits on Joe Batt’s Arm, one of 11 communities on the island that are powered primarily by a single economic engine—its fishery.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 Apr. 2026
-
The sharp rise owes to a cocoa shortage caused primarily by adverse weather and crop disease in West Africa, which accounts for about 70% of the world’s cocoa.—
Hanna Wickes,
Miami Herald,
1 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
The new adaptation has to figure out how to update the screenplay to avoid the mostly exploitational way such relationships were treated in the dramas of the 1970s.—
Chris Jones,
New York Daily News,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Unlike the sugarcane-ethanol success story, Brazil’s biodiesel, which is mostly made from soybeans, only makes up 14% of the diesel blend.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
31 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
Shailin’s relatives in Iran—largely deprived of a voice themselves—told her to publicize their plight.—
Cora Engelbrecht,
New Yorker,
3 Apr. 2026
-
These reforms, targeted mainly at commercial and industrial buildings in dense downtowns, largely missed the looming crisis in suburban residential areas that were slowly building themselves into a different kind of tinderbox that burned from the outside in.—
Noah Haggerty,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
That’s far longer than Camden Management Partners’ schedule for renovating them into a mix of predominantly apartments with some first-floor commercial space.—
Don Stacom,
Hartford Courant,
2 Apr. 2026
-
In late March, a missile exploded over the predominantly Christian Keserwan region north of Beirut, with debris falling on different areas.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
2 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Principally.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/principally. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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