as in advantage
a quality that gives something special worth
the cardinal virtue of wool is that it retains its insulating properties even when wet
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Recent Examples of cardinal virtue
Aquinas also noted that each of these four cardinal virtues had several smaller virtues associated with them.
—
Andrew Abela, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
Doubt is a cardinal virtue in the sciences, which advance through skeptics’ willingness to question the experts.
—Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2020
Breaching tennis’ cardinal virtues of self-sufficiency and autonomy, the coach begins by telling this emotional woman to calm down.
—Jon Wertheim, SI.com, 11 Apr. 2018
Dialogue is one of their cardinal virtues, and most seemed determined to give Trump a hearing.
—Time, 25 Jan. 2018
Andrew Abela, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
Doubt is a cardinal virtue in the sciences, which advance through skeptics’ willingness to question the experts.
—Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2020
Breaching tennis’ cardinal virtues of self-sufficiency and autonomy, the coach begins by telling this emotional woman to calm down.
—Jon Wertheim, SI.com, 11 Apr. 2018
Dialogue is one of their cardinal virtues, and most seemed determined to give Trump a hearing.
—Time, 25 Jan. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cardinal virtue
Noun
-
Kansas State has beaten the Jayhawks 16 straight times, but Missouri owns a razor-thin advantage in the Border War.—
Blake Toppmeyer,
The Tennessean,
12 July 2025
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With the advantage of a year in the NBA in his favor, Buzelis showed a much higher ability to handle the ball in traffic.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
12 July 2025
Noun
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Disinformation — the purposeful bending of, or negating, the truth — is used to destroy reputations, shatter trust, change political regimes, win at all costs, and muddy our distinctions between what is real and true, and what is blatantly false and biased.—
Davia Temin,
Forbes.com,
6 July 2025
-
At least one member appeared to struggle to understand the distinction between a vaccine’s efficacy and its effectiveness.—
Lisa Jarvis,
Twin Cities,
3 July 2025
Noun
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High-net-worth individuals, particularly business owners, professionals and investors, often face elevated exposure to legal risk simply by virtue of their visibility and success.—
Blake Harris,
Forbes.com,
10 July 2025
-
Just by virtue of being president, Trump has bolstered this belief of mine.—
Carlo Versano,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 July 2025
Noun
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Take this Dior set, with a serum, cream, and lotion packed away in a plush travel bag—a $219 value for just $160!—
Conçetta Ciarlo,
Vogue,
12 July 2025
-
Stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a constant value, usually a 1:1 dollar peg, are commonly used by crypto traders to move funds between tokens.—
Niket Nishant,
USA Today,
12 July 2025
Noun
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The challenge is not to choose between diversity and merit, but to design programs that advance both goals simultaneously.—
Michael Posner,
Forbes.com,
3 July 2025
-
The peer review process could be manipulated to favor research supporting governmental objectives rather than being based on scientific merit.—
A.J. Russo,
Baltimore Sun,
3 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cardinal virtue.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cardinal%20virtue. Accessed 19 Jul. 2025.
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