morality
Americannoun
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the quality of being moral
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conformity, or degree of conformity, to conventional standards of moral conduct
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a system of moral principles
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an instruction or lesson in morals
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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)
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"American History" by Judith Ortiz Cofer
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Black Like Me
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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.
See Examples For:
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
Freddy has a keen sense of how to ride a social media trend, and because he’s a huge Cristiano Ronaldo fan, it’s reasonable to question his authenticity and morality.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026
In the first decade of the 20th century, moralists and financiers debated the question as never before, because the law and economic morality were rapidly changing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Instead, crime reports were sensationalized and offered as further evidence of the breakdown in lawfulness, morality, and social stability in the wake of the Civil Rights Movement.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
More to the point, Hardy and Easton wrote, “pleasure is a complete and worthwhile goal” that needs neither validation nor antiquated moralities.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 10, 2023
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
I’d love to hear the atheist perspective on what makes for a good religion, or the reason why different religions support different moralities.
From Salon ● Mar. 25, 2013
There is a real debate to be had – one that involves politics, ideologies, perhaps even moralities.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 4, 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.
