on principle

on principle idiom
  1. On moral or ethical grounds. As James Russell Lowell wrote about Alexander Pope in 1871, “There was a time when I could not read Pope, but disliked him on principle.” [First half of 1800s]
  2. According to a fixed rule or practice. For example, The police were locking up the demonstrators on principle. [First half of 1800s]
  3. on general principle. For no special reason, in general, as in Dean won't touch broccoli on general principle. [First half of 1800s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Comments


Do you have more to add? Sign in to share your linguistic knowledge or observation.

Connect with Facebook