cardinal virtue
Americannoun
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anything considered to be an important or characteristic virtue.
Tenacity is his cardinal virtue.
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Ancient Philosophy. cardinal virtues, justice, prudence, temperance, and fortitude.
Etymology
Origin of cardinal virtue
Middle English word dating back to 1300–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Within a year of each other, Joseph Schumpeter coined the term "Ricardian vice," which you mentioned earlier, and Milton Friedman launched his campaign to revive it as a cardinal virtue.
From Salon • Feb. 1, 2025
Doubt is a cardinal virtue in the sciences, which advance through skeptics’ willingness to question the experts.
From Washington Post • Dec. 16, 2020
Truth was the cardinal virtue of Zoroastrianism, with lying being synonymous with evil.
From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2020
Variety is its cardinal virtue, seasoned with the element of surprise.
From New York Times • Aug. 21, 2014
Not so Elmer, who carried out the principle which he was forever holding up before the others as a cardinal virtue which should govern a true scout always.
From Pathfinder or, The Missing Tenderfoot by Douglas, Alan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
