decorous
[dek-er-uh s, dih-kawr-uh s, -kohr-]
- characterized by dignified propriety in conduct, manners, appearance, character, etc.
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Origin of decorous
Synonyms
See more synonyms for decorous on Thesaurus.comproper, becoming.
Antonyms
undignified.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for decorous
Contemporary Examples
Not for Rodriguez the decorous, red-carpet likes of Gwynnie, Sandra Bullock, or Tom Cruise, but “hot criminal” Jeremy Meeks.
Meet the PR Guru for the ‘Hot Convict,’ the Octomom, and Every Other D-List TrainwreckErin Cunningham
July 17, 2014
A decorous group of nine panelists presented their positions one at a time, following distinctly un-Israeli rules of etiquette.
Historical Examples
Thus our conversation ran--decorous and harmless enough, in all conscience.
In the ValleyHarold Frederic
Imagine “swell up” from Sandford, the repressed and decorous!
A Breath of Prairie and other storiesWill Lillibridge
Thorpe accepted in good part the intimation that silence was after all most decorous.
The Market-PlaceHarold Frederic
Nothing could be more perfectly proper and decorous than this dance.
That Boy Of Norcott'sCharles James Lever
There are no drunken men there, nothing but what is pleasant and decorous.
decorous
- characterized by propriety in manners, conduct, etc
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Word Origin
C17: from Latin decōrus, from decor elegance
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 decorous
adj.
1660s, from Latin decorus "becoming, seemly, fitting, proper," from decus (genitive decoris) "ornament" (see decorate). Related: Decorously; decorousness.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper