ethos

[ee-thos, ee-thohs, eth-os, -ohs]

noun

1. Sociology.,  the fundamental character or spirit of a culture; the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a group or society; dominant assumptions of a people or period.

   In the Greek ethos the individual was highly valued.

2. the character or disposition of a community, group, person, etc.

3. the moral element in dramatic literature that determines a character's action rather than their thought or emotion.

ethos

/ ˈiːθɒs /

noun

1. the distinctive character, spirit, and attitudes of a people, culture, era, etc

   the revolutionary ethos

Word History and Origins

Origin of ethos¹

First recorded in 1850–55; from Latin ēthos “character, portrayal of character,” from Greek êthos “custom, habit, disposition character”

Word History and Origins

Origin of ethos¹

C19: from Late Latin: habit, from Greek

Example Sentences

As he rose through the ranks, he brought the trader ethos to the rest of the institution, creating a “bank for all” that offered every kind of financial service available to the market.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

For starters, the company is “pursuing a tight, vertically integrated approach that appears to bring a more simplified, smaller design ethos to market,” analysts wrote.

Read more on Barron's

It’s only being gay that makes someone a criminal—and, presumably, ineligible for the benefits of the vaunted warrior ethos.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“It really has been about looking at partnerships which kind of match that ethos.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“And now we want to take that ethos to tens of millions of people,” she said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• ideology 
• mentality 
• mindset 
• spirit 

When To Use

What does ethos mean?

The ethos of a culture or society is its collective spirit or character—the fundamental or underlying beliefs and attitudes that influence its customs and practices.Things sometimes said to have an ethos include countries (the American ethos of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness), cultures and subcultures (the punk ethos), and eras in time (the counterculture ethos of the ’60s).The word can also refer collectively to such beliefs and attitudes in a person.The term ethos is also used as the name of a particular method of persuasion in which a person relies on their credibility or character when making an appeal or an argument. In this context, it is often discussed alongside logos (an appeal to logic) and pathos (an appeal to emotion).Example: Our company ethos is based on creating a space where people of all backgrounds feel welcome and valued in the workplace.