amity
noun
friendship; peaceful harmony.
amity
1 American
[am-i-tee]
/ ˈæm ɪ ti /
noun
-
friendship; peaceful harmony.
-
mutual understanding and a peaceful relationship, especially between nations; peace; accord.
Amity
2
American
[am-i-tee]
/ ˈæm ɪ ti /
noun
amity
British
/ ˈæmɪtɪ /
noun
Etymology
Origin of amity
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English amit(i)e, from Middle French amitie, Old French amiste(t), from unattested Vulgar Latin amicitāt-, stem of amīcitās, derivative of Latin amīcus; see ami, amiable, -ity
Explanation
The word amity refers to a peaceful, friendly nature, much like the French word ami, or "friend." From the Latin amicus, "friend," amity means "friendly relations." That strong sense of friendship lends irony to the name of the book, and later the movie, called The Amityville Horror, about a horrifying town with a weirdly cheerful name. In truth, though, amity means "mutual understanding and peace." Wouldn't it be nice if all of the world's nations lived in amity?
Vocabulary lists containing amity
All You Need is Love: Amor and Phil
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A Midsummer Night's Dream
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Beowulf vocabulary
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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.
CJ Reim, whose venture firm Amity Ventures backed Isara, described the approach as coordinating “swarms of specialists” to perform research for users.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026
Bond is the head of the Amity Foundation, which runs this facility in partnership with CDCR, and is the co-chair of the advisory committee charged with reimagining San Quentin.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 26, 2023
"No one wants a shark attack to occur, but these bans are just creating the same fear as generated on the ill-fated Amity Island in Jaws. It's just not the right way to go."
From Science Daily • Nov. 14, 2023
This is not the same kind of horror that terrorized the fictional East Coast town of Amity Island in the terrifying movie thriller “Jaws.”
From Seattle Times • Jul. 7, 2023
The first is Johanna Reyes, former spokesperson of Amity, identifiable by the scar that crosses her face and the hint of yellow peeking out from under her black jacket.
From "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth
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.
