attitude

[at-i-tood, -tyood]

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noun

manner, disposition, feeling, position, etc., with regard to a person or thing; tendency or orientation, especially of the mind: a negative attitude; group attitudes.

position or posture of the body appropriate to or expressive of an action, emotion, etc.: a threatening attitude; a relaxed attitude.

Aeronautics. the inclination of the three principal axes of an aircraft relative to the wind, to the ground, etc.

Ballet. a pose in which the dancer stands on one leg, the other bent behind.

Origin of attitude

1660–70; < French < Italian attitudine < Late Latin aptitūdini- (stem of aptitūdō) aptitude

Related formsat·ti·tu·di·nal, adjective

Can be confusedaltitude attitude

Synonyms for attitude

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR attitude ON THESAURUS.COM

2. See position.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for attitude

demeanor, bias, perspective, mood, sentiment, character, posture, approach, belief, stance, philosophy, temperament, mindset, reaction, prejudice, stand, position, sensibility, opinion, notion

Examples from the Web for attitude

Contemporary Examples of attitude

I think a lot of it has to do with the attitude and the energy behind it and the honesty.
‘Black Dynamite’ Presents Police Brutality: The Musical
Stereo Williams
January 9, 2015
From this attitude he draws a singular comic and literary power.
Houellebecq’s Incendiary Novel Imagines France With a Muslim President
Pierre Assouline
January 9, 2015
Alexander Stephens, vice president of the Confederacy, summed up the Southern attitude in his 1861 Cornerstone Speech.
Steve Scalise Shows There’s a Fine Line Between Confederate & Southern
Lloyd Green
January 2, 2015
Or that she probably, given her attitude toward Spotify, wants more money than that per stream if she has to let me do it?
Death of the Author by Viral Infection: In Defense of Taylor Swift, Digital Doomsayer
Arthur Chu
December 3, 2014
Oddly enough, many who hold this “not like us” attitude are religious people.
Ferguson, Immigration, and ‘Us Vs. Them’
Gene Robinson
November 27, 2014

Historical Examples of attitude

Let us realize the importance of the attitude in which we stand before the world.
United States Presidents' Inaugural Speeches
Various
He was in doubt as to the attitude he had better assume to Will and Ted.
The Raid From Beausejour; And How The Carter Boys Lifted The Mortgage
Charles G. D. Roberts
It is expressed in conduct, of course; but conduct may fail while the attitude can remain constant.
The Conquest of Fear
Basil King
Their common decency in attitude toward the other sex was the unique bond of union.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
In the instant of reply, Dick Gilder, by some inspiration of love, changed his attitude.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana

British Dictionary definitions for attitude

attitude

noun

the way a person views something or tends to behave towards it, often in an evaluative way

a theatrical pose created for effect (esp in the phrase strike an attitude)

a position of the body indicating mood or emotion

informal a hostile mannerdon't give me attitude, my girl

the orientation of an aircraft's axes in relation to some plane, esp the horizontalSee also axis 1 (def. 1)

the orientation of a spacecraft in relation to its direction of motion

ballet a classical position in which the body is upright and one leg raised and bent behind

Derived Formsattitudinal, adjective

Word Origin for attitude

C17: from French, from Italian attitudine disposition, from Late Latin aptitūdō fitness, from Latin aptus apt

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for attitude

1660s, via French attitude (17c.), from Italian attitudine "disposition, posture," also "aptness, promptitude," from Late Latin aptitudinem (nominative aptitudo; see aptitude). Originally 17c. a technical term in art for the posture of a figure in a statue or painting; later generalized to "a posture of the body supposed to imply some mental state" (1725). Sense of "settled behavior reflecting feeling or opinion" is first recorded 1837. Connotations of "antagonistic and uncooperative" developed by 1962 in slang.

attitude in Medicine

attitude

[ăt′ĭ-tōōd′]

n.

The position of the body and limbs; posture.

A manner of acting.

A relatively stable and enduring predisposition to behave or react in a characteristic way.