morality
Americannoun
-
the quality of being moral
-
conformity, or degree of conformity, to conventional standards of moral conduct
-
a system of moral principles
-
an instruction or lesson in morals
-
short for morality play
Usage
What is morality? Morality is a conformity to the rules of good or virtuous conduct, as in Because he was leading a life according to morality, the knight declined the reward for rescuing the princess. Morality is also an individual person’s goodness or virtuousness, as in Batman’s morality would not allow him to kill any evildoers. Morality is also a system of rules regarding goodness or virtue, as in The Bible is the source of Christian morality. Morality is a very complex concept that refers to the written or unwritten rules that society uses to determine what good behavior is. Good here means not evil and refers to behavior that people agree is honorable, just, or virtuous. If you are concerned with morality, you want to be a good person and don’t want to commit evil acts. The rules of goodness that define morality are called morals and can come from many different sources, such as religion or cultural norms. The opposite of morality is immorality. Example: I try to live my life according to morality, so I always tell the truth.
Synonym Usage
See goodness.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of morality
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English moralite, from Late Latin mōrālitās; see moral, -ity
Explanation
Morality is a concern with what’s right or wrong. Your sense of morality prevents you from cheating on your school exams, on your taxes, or on your spouse. You’ll notice the word moral is in morality. And you might remember reading fairy tales that ended with the phrase, “The moral of the story is…” That’s because stories for children are often intended to instruct kids as to what the good or right decision is in a situation. For example, Cinderella teaches kids that if their foot fits the glass slipper, they can end up marrying a prince. How's that for morality?
Vocabulary lists containing morality
Lyndon B. Johnson on "The Great Society" (1964)
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"American History" by Judith Ortiz Cofer
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Black Like Me
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Given our own tinderbox of a world—in the face of the Somme, in the face of millions killed—the highest morality has nothing to do with domestic scandals and everything to do with preventing great-power war.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
DR Congo's Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner wrote to the owners of Arsenal and PSG and to Bayern president Herbert Hainer to "question the morality" of the deals.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Businesses in Afghanistan's western city of Herat have suffered from a downturn in female customers opting to stay home following a recent crackdown by morality police on women's attire, according to shopkeepers, drivers and residents.
From Barron's ● Jul. 12, 2026
But it remains a relevant morality tale — of the rot that comes with coveting all of L.A.’s beautiful things and the pitfalls of parenting by giving your children all the material things you lacked.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
Meanwhile, clergymen, college presidents, and other self-appointed spokesmen for communal standards of morality seized upon the Burr-Hamilton encounter to launch a crusade against dueling throughout most of the northern states.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
But dig a little deeper and the play reveals a society in transition — new moralities wrestling with moribund conventions that refuse to die.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2022
What replaced argument was a spectrum of moralities: You took a place and you occupied it.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 10, 2021
Titles such as X-Men and Black Panther broached civil rights issues and blurred moralities.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 27, 2018
They are not motivated by simple human moralities, by universalized appeals to the superego such as “good cat” or “bad cat,” by guilt culture or shame culture.
From Slate ● Jun. 30, 2012
The intensity had not abated after two years, nor had her awe at his self-assured eccentricities and his fierce moralities.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
