Virtue

vir·tue /ˈvɜrtʃu/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[vur-choo] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation –noun 1. moral excellence; goodness; righteousness. 2. conformity of one's life and conduct to moral and ethical principles; uprightness; rectitude. 3. chastity; virginity: to lose one's virtue. 4. a particular moral excellence. Compare cardinal virtues, natural virtue, theological virtue. 5. a good or admirable quality or property: the virtue of knowing one's weaknesses. 6. effective force; power or potency: a charm with the virtue of removing warts. 7. virtues, an order of angels. Compare angel (def. 1). 8. manly excellence; valor. —Idioms9. by or in virtue of, by reason of; because of: to act by virtue of one's legitimate authority. 10. make a virtue of necessity, to make the best of a difficult or unsatisfactory situation.

[Origin: 1175–1225; alter. (with i < L) of ME vertu < AF, OF < L virtūt- (s. of virtūs) maleness, worth, virtue, equiv. to vir man (see virile) + -tūt- abstract n. suffix]

—Related forms vir·tue·less, adjective vir·tue·less·ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. See goodness. 2. probity, integrity. —Antonyms 1. vice. Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This vir·tue (vûr'chōō) Pronunciation Key n.

Moral excellence and righteousness; goodness. An example or kind of moral excellence: the virtue of patience. Chastity, especially in a woman. A particularly efficacious, good, or beneficial quality; advantage: a plan with the virtue of being practical. Effective force or power: believed in the virtue of prayer. virtues Christianity The fifth of the nine orders of angels in medieval angelology. Obsolete Manly courage; valor.

[Middle English vertu, from Old French, from Latin virtūs, manliness, excellence, goodness, from vir, man; see wī-ro- in Indo-European roots.]

(Download Now or Buy the Book) The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This virtue

c.1225, "moral life and conduct, moral excellence," vertu, from Anglo-Fr. and O.Fr. vertu, from L. virtutem (nom. virtus) "moral strength, manliness, valor, excellence, worth," from vir "man" (see virile). Phrase by virtue of (c.1230) preserves alternate M.E. sense of "efficacy." Wyclif Bible has virtue where K.J.V. uses power. The seven cardinal virtues (c.1320) were divided into the natural (justice, prudence, temperance, fortitude) and the theological (hope, faith, charity). To make a virtue of a necessity (c.1374) translates L. facere de necessitate virtutem. [Jerome]

noun 1. the quality of doing what is right and avoiding what is wrong 2. any admirable quality or attribute; "work of great merit" [syn: merit] [ant: demerit] 3. morality with respect to sexual relations 4. a particular moral excellence

a good moral quality Example: Honesty is a virtue. Arabic: فَضيلَه Chinese (Simplified): 美德 Chinese (Traditional): 美德 Czech: ctnost Danish: dyd Dutch: deugd Estonian: voorus Finnish: hyve French: vertu German: die Tugend Greek: προτέρημα, αρετή Hungarian: erény Icelandic: dyggð Indonesian: kebajikan Italian: virtù

Japanese: 美徳

Korean: 미덕, 선 Latvian: tikums Lithuanian: dorybė Norwegian: dyd Polish: cnota Portuguese (Brazil): virtude Romanian: virtute Russian: добродетель Slovak: cnosť Slovenian: vrlina Spanish: virtud Swedish: dygd Turkish: erdem, fazilet

virtue2 [ˈvəːtʃuː] noun

a good quality Example: The house is small, but it has the virtue of being easy to clean. Arabic: ميزَه حَسَنَه Chinese (Simplified): 优点 Chinese (Traditional): 優點 Czech: výhoda Danish: fordel Dutch: voordeel Estonian: eelis Finnish: etu French: avantage German: der Vorzug Greek: προτέρημα, προσόν Hungarian: érték Icelandic: kostur Indonesian: kebaikan Italian: vantaggio

Japanese: 長所

Korean: 장점, 가치 Latvian: labums; priekšrocība Lithuanian: privalumas Norwegian: fortrinn Polish: zaleta Portuguese (Brazil): virtude Portuguese (Portugal): virtude Romanian: avantaj Russian: достоинство Slovak: prednosť, výhoda Slovenian: prednost Spanish: virtud Swedish: fördel Turkish: üstünlük avantaj

virtue3 [ˈvəːtʃuː] noun

goodness of character etc Example: She is a person of great virtue. Arabic: عِفَّه، طَهارَه Chinese (Simplified): 贞操 Chinese (Traditional): 貞操 Czech: poctivost Danish: god egenskab Dutch: deugdzaamheid Estonian: vooruslikkus Finnish: hyveellisyys French: vertu, mérite German: die Rechtschaffenheit Greek: αρετή Hungarian: erkölcsi tisztaság Icelandic: verðleiki, kostur Indonesian: watak baik Italian: virtù

Japanese: 貞節

Korean: 덕, 덕성; 정숙 Latvian: laba rakstura īpašība; labs raksturs Lithuanian: dorumas Norwegian: karakterstyrke Polish: prawość Portuguese (Brazil): virtude Portuguese (Portugal): virtude Romanian: merit Russian: добродетель Slovak: dobrá vlastnosť, bezúhonnosť, počestnosť Slovenian: krepost Spanish: virtud Swedish: dygd Turkish: meziyet, haslet

Virtue

Navigation menu

Search