virtu

or ver·tu

[ver-too, vur-too]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR virtu ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

excellence or merit in objects of art, curios, and the like.

(used with a plural verb) such objects or articles collectively.

a taste for or knowledge of such objects.

RELATED WORDS

knick-knacks

Origin of virtu

1715–25; < Italian virtù, vertù virtue

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for virtu

Historical Examples of virtu

To me, the humbler task is assigned of recording what is only more particularly connected with books and virtu.
Bibliomania; or Book-Madness
Thomas Frognall Dibdin
It has at once damped every pursuit which my spirits had even now prevented me from being weaned from, I mean of virtu.
Calamities and Quarrels of Authors
Isaac Disraeli
Of Consul Smith I am unable to present the lover of virtu with any particulars more acceptable than the following.
Bibliomania; or Book-Madness
Thomas Frognall Dibdin
For virtu, I have a little to entertain you—it is my sole pleasure.
The Wits and Beaux of Society
Grace & Philip Wharton
If virtu did not so often manage tew make herself repulsive, vice would not be half so attraktive.
The Complete Works of Josh Billings
Henry W. Shaw

British Dictionary definitions for virtu

virtu

vertu

noun

a taste or love for curios or works of fine art; connoisseurship

such objects collectively

the quality of being rare, beautiful, or otherwise appealing to a connoisseur (esp in the phrases articles of virtu; objects of virtu)

Word Origin for virtu

C18: from Italian virtù; see virtue

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 virtu

"excellence in an object of art, passion for works of art," 1722, from Italian virtu "excellence," from Latin virtutem (nominative virtus) "virtue" (see virtue). The same word as virtue, borrowed during a period when everything Italian was in vogue. Sometimes spelled vertu, after French, but this is unjustified, as this sense of the word is not in French.