/mak"sim/ , n.
1. an expression of a general truth or principle, esp. an aphoristic or sententious one: the maxims of La Rochefoucauld.
2. a principle or rule of conduct.
[ 1400-50; late ME maxime maxima (orig. in phrase maxima propositio axiom, lit., greatest proposition), n. use of fem. of L maximus, superl. of magnus great; see MUCH ]
Syn. 1. aphorism, saying, adage, apothegm. See proverb .