Tenets

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Fundamental principles or beliefs that are accepted as true by a group or individual
2. Core doctrines or values that guide the behavior and understanding of a community or person
3. Basic ideas or convictions considered to be authoritative and foundational within a system of thought

Etymology: "Tenets" is the plural of "tenet", and the singular is the more revealing form. It comes straight from Latin "tenet", which means "he, she, or it holds", the third-person singular of "teneo", "hold; have". The Latin verb is the same root behind "tenable", the quality of something that can be held or defended against objection. That origin explains the modern sense. A tenet is a belief one holds on to, the principle a person or group grips and treats as fixed. Its older English relative, "tenent", shows the same idea of holding, and the word kept the sense of something held firm rather than something merely thought.

Synonyms: principles, doctrines