gravitas
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of gravitas
First recorded in 1920–25; from Latin gravitās; see gravity
Explanation
Gravitas is seriousness and dignity. You might try to speak with gravitas, but no one will take you seriously if you're wearing clown makeup and giant floppy shoes. Gravitas is a Latin word that means "weight or heaviness." It came to mean a figurative weight after gravity acquired a primarily scientific meaning. A biography of Abraham Lincoln will inevitably be full of gravitas, and places like libraries, museums, and university buildings seem to have gravitas, or dignity — while grocery stores and gyms usually do not.
Vocabulary lists containing gravitas
Olympics Vocabulary for Champions
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Good Grief!: Grav, Griev
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Foreign Words and Phrases Commonly Used in English, List 2
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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.
It is hoped Alonso will have the personality, gravitas from his playing career and tactical acumen to bring the club back to the standards it expects by qualifying for the Champions League and winning trophies.
From BBC • May 16, 2026
The deal shows how the media sector, while fraught with changes in technology and customer habits, continues to attract trophy hunters who want the clout and gravitas of informing the world.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026
If things take a turn for the worse, it is doubtful he has the wisdom and gravitas to handle it.
From Salon • Mar. 6, 2026
It’s unclear if any of the current leaders would possess the gravitas of Oseguera, who wielded unquestioned authority even as his health deteriorated and he was forced to live on the run.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2026
“I’ll give you that Tennant brought a gravitas to the Doctor that grounded the insanity of the ludicrous situations he got himself into, but Matt Smith didn’t play the Doctor, he was the Doctor.”
From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson
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.
