as in principles
formal
a statement by an authority of how people should behave
the moral precepts of a religion
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Recent Examples of precepts
Guided by its own creed, Beijing tends to wield economic power according to its own precepts rather than global norms or external expectations.
—
Zongyuan Zoe Liu, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025
Some precepts are unassuming — practice tolerance, be generous towards those in need, regard humanity as a family.
—Luis Melecio-Zambrano, Mercury News, 5 Dec. 2025
Rival Dillard’s, a primarily Southern and Southwestern chain with 290 stores, has also seen modest growth by following those basic retail precepts.
—Phil Wahba, Fortune, 7 Nov. 2025
Change is inevitable, but the rapid destruction of the basic precepts upon which our government was formed is beyond dangerous.
—U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for precepts
Noun
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So this is to the ones who are sticking to their values in difficult moments.—
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Money-minded Venus is squaring curative Chiron, pushing you to match your spending habits with your values (without shaming yourself or others).—
Noun
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So there's really no choice but for the four major conference commissioners to compile a set of rules and guidelines that make at least a marginal bit of sense.—
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Georgetown law professor Steve Vladeck, a witness called by Democrats, said the nondisclosure process followed then-existing DOJ guidelines and that Congress only revised notification rules after a 2024 inspector general report.—
Noun
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Reza Pahlavi himself has distributed messages calling for defections among the armed forces, and coordinated protests through QR codes.—
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Consumers, meanwhile, are being asked to absorb the costs of aggressive climate mandates, including electric vehicle requirements and restrictive building codes, while state agencies have failed to comply with their own mandates.—
Noun
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His preference would be to find simpler axioms for quantum mechanics — intuitive principles that would let theorists re-derive the theory in a new form altogether.—
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In other words, as Cleveland tore through the league last season, the players responded to most of the milestones reached with a collective shrug and worn axioms about nothing mattering until the playoffs.—
Noun
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The rest of the book is spent expanding on these maxims one by one, in her colloquial, easy style, with references to classic psychological studies, her own research and her own experiences.—
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Everything bops breezily along, stopping occasionally to have Dek growl maxims about strength through domination, and observe a decapitation or two.—
Noun
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In fact, Penn may have actually violated one of California’s clean air laws.—
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The project involves removing asbestos and lead contamination, updating the facilities to be compliant with accessibility laws, and upgrading electrical and ventilation systems.—
Cite this Entry
“Precepts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/precepts. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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