nobility

[noh-bil-i-tee]

See more synonyms for nobility on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural no·bil·i·ties.

the noble class or the body of nobles in a country.
(in Britain) the peerage.
the state or quality of being noble.

nobleness of mind, character, or spirit; exalted moral excellence.
grandeur or magnificence.
noble birth or rank.

Origin of nobility

1350–1400; Middle English nobilite < Latin nōbilitās. See noble, -ity

Related formsnon·no·bil·i·ty, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for nobility

dignity, generosity, superiority, virtue, greatness, integrity, grandeur, magnanimity, majesty, society, elevation, incorruptibility, ennoblement, exaltation, royalty, gentry, magnificence, elite, loftiness, glorification

Examples from the Web for nobility

Contemporary Examples of nobility

They work anonymously and there is nobility in what they do.
Damien Hirst’s Army of Geppettos
Tim Teeman
December 2, 2014
I just tried to infuse it with nobility, because he was after all a king.
Ron Perlman's Secret Suicide Attempt
William O’Connor
October 28, 2014
The “wound” is the ignorance of the nobility of the individual and of man, and the separation of all of us.
Andrew Garfield on the Evils of Capitalism, the Hacking Scandal, and Criticism of ‘Spider-Man 2’
Marlow Stern
September 10, 2014
For centuries, Slane Castle has been home to Irish nobility.
Eminem Rocks Ireland: Slane Castle’s Latest Legendary Performer
Michael Daly
August 20, 2013
Young Fred got really irritated then and pointed out all the actresses that had actually married into the nobility.
A Real-Life ‘Downton Abbey’ Affair
Margaret Powell
January 13, 2013

Historical Examples of nobility

Her woman's intuition was sufficient guarantee of the nobility of his character.
The Monster Men
Edgar Rice Burroughs
There was in this man an Oriental nobility choked by Western fashion and customs.
My Double Life
Sarah Bernhardt
Yet even in this environment of evil we see the nobility of the man, and his real self.
A Dish Of Orts
George MacDonald
Is it a good sign, that he wishes to see Royalty and Nobility?
A Tale of Two Cities
Charles Dickens
My last was James Glencairn, so you can have no objection to the company of nobility.
The Letters of Robert Burns
Robert Burns

British Dictionary definitions for nobility

nobility

noun plural -ties

a socially or politically privileged class whose titles are conferred by descent or by royal decree
the state or quality of being morally or spiritually good; dignitythe nobility of his mind
(in the British Isles) the class of people holding the titles of dukes, marquesses, earls, viscounts, or barons and their feminine equivalents collectively; peerage

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 nobility

mid-14c., "quality of being excellent or rare," from Old French nobilite "high rank; dignity, grace; great deed" (12c., Modern French nobilité), and directly from Latin nobilitatem (nominative nobilitas) "celebrity, fame; high birth; excellence, superiority; the nobles," from nobilis "well-known, prominent" (see noble (adj.)). Meaning "quality of being of noble rank or birth" is attested from late 14c.; sense of "noble class collectively" is from 1520s.