first principlesnoun [ plural ]
uk/ˌfɜːst ˈprɪn.sə.pəlz/us/ˌfɝːst ˈprɪn.sə.pəlz/UKthe basic and most important reasons for doing or believing something:
We seem to have forgotten why we're fighting this campaign - we really need to return to first principles.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Motives and reasons
- cause 1
- drive
- ground
- hidden agenda
- impulse
- in the name of sth idiom
- inclination
- justification
- mainspring
- motivation
- motive
- name
- object
- peg
- rationale
- reason
- should
- wherefores
- why