morality
noun
mo·ral·i·ty
mə-ˈra-lə-tē 
mȯ-
plural moralities
1
a
: a moral discourse, statement, or lesson
ended his lecture with a trite morality
b
: a literary or other imaginative work teaching a moral lesson
"Aesop's Fables" is famous as a morality.
2
a
: a doctrine or system of moral conduct
the basic law which an adequate morality ought to state—
Marjorie Grene
Marjorie Grene
b
moralities plural
: particular moral principles or rules of conduct
we were all brought up on one of these moralities—Psychiatry
Psychiatry3
: conformity to ideals of right human conduct
admitted the expediency of the law but questioned its morality
4
: moral conduct : virtue
morality today involves a responsible relationship toward the laws of the natural world—P. B. Sears
P. B. SearsExamples of morality in a Sentence
The group is calling for a return to traditional morality.
two groups with clashing moralities
The decision may be legally justified, but I question its morality.
Recent Examples on the Web
But the director manages to spin a clever modern-day morality tale mixing art, social class and big bucks.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2025
Your arrest record, your credit score, your driving history, your rental history — are all just measurements of morality that people use to establish a trust matrix about you.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2025
When morality clauses first appeared in Hollywood in the 1920s, they were meant to protect studios from scandal—actors getting drunk, producers getting indicted, the usual mayhem.
—Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
The subsequent attempts, immediately following his passing, to directly link this tragic event to my name—especially in light of this fact—cross all boundaries of basic human morality, in my view.
—Megan Cartwright, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for morality
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Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2025
Your arrest record, your credit score, your driving history, your rental history — are all just measurements of morality that people use to establish a trust matrix about you.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2025
When morality clauses first appeared in Hollywood in the 1920s, they were meant to protect studios from scandal—actors getting drunk, producers getting indicted, the usual mayhem.
—Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
The subsequent attempts, immediately following his passing, to directly link this tragic event to my name—especially in light of this fact—cross all boundaries of basic human morality, in my view.
—Megan Cartwright, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for morality
Cite this Entry
“Morality.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/morality. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
morality
noun
mo·ral·i·ty
mə-ˈral-ət-ē
plural moralities
1
: moral quality : virtue
judge the morality of an action
2
: a system of moral rules
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