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.
See Examples For:
Frederick actively pursued a treaty of amity and commerce with the new American republic, an important step toward broader recognition of the United States.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026
There is a hope for a return to the amity seen at the 2021 COP meeting, where they announced a surprise joint agreement to accelerate emissions reductions.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2023
With that, the funeral mass ends, as does the sibling amity.
From Salon ● May 22, 2023
Wickremesinghe has since cracked down on protests and sought amity among political parties, saying only an all-party government can solve the country’s problems.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 3, 2022
“Mutual understanding, leading to amity and good relations.”
From "Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody" by Patrick Ness
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
He asked his colleagues in film production for props so his crews could re-create the fictional Amity Island coastline in the studio’s hilly back lot miles from downtown L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 23, 2025
The shark, as a threat, is foreign, is ultimately conquerable, and can be left in the past without requiring any self-reflection from the residents of Amity Island.
From Slate ● Oct. 29, 2024
"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
I am in a bed in Amity headquarters, and the smell of sawdust is in the air.
From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
