respectability

American

[ri-spek-tuh-bil-i-tee] / rɪˌspɛk təˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

plural

respectabilities

the state or quality of being respectable.
respectable social standing, character, or reputation.
a respectable person or persons.
respectabilities, things accepted as respectable.

Other Word Forms

nonrespectability noun
prerespectability noun
semirespectability noun
superrespectability noun
unrespectability noun

Etymology

Origin of respectability

First recorded in 1775–85; respectable + -ity

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.

U.S. backing gave them respectability and visibility, helping some to overcome their pariah status.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 22, 2026

Bakary Sambe of the Timbuktu Institute think-tank in Dakar told AFP that "Dicko is a figure who enjoys both religious respectability and popular support".

From Barron's • Jan. 14, 2026

Williamson chose this route for “Unconventional” because he wanted to make an unabashedly queer relationship show “written without respectability politics in mind, so I’d need to find a different pathway.”

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 17, 2025

It often arrives dressed in intellectual respectability framed as concern, skepticism or “just asking questions.”

From Salon • Oct. 10, 2025

Mr. Willis published an essay, “Post-Mortuum Soiree,” in the next issue of his Home Journal, “the ‘demonstration,’ … is of sufficient extent and respectability to warrant grave attention.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023