Adjacent Words

Dignity definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

DIGNITY, n. [L., worthy.]
1. True honor; nobleness or elevation of mind, consisting in a high sense of propriety, truth and justice, with an abhorrence of mean and sinful actions; opposed to meanness. In this sense, we speak of the dignity of mind, and dignity of sentiments. This dignity is based on moral rectitude; all vice is incompatible with true dignity of mind. The man who deliberately injures another, whether male or female, has no true dignity of soul.
2. Elevation; honorable place or rank of elevation; degree of excellence, either in estimation, or in the order of nature. Man is superior in dignity to brutes.
3. Elevation of aspect; grandeur of mein; as a man of native dignity.
4. Elevation of deportment; as dignity of manners or behavior.
5. An elevated office, civil or ecclesiastical, giving a high rank in society; advancement; preferment, or the rank attached to it. We say, a man enjoys his dignity with moderation, or without haughtiness. Among ecclesiastics, dignity is office or preferment joined with power or jurisdiction.
6. The rank or title of a nobleman.
7. In oratory, one of the three parts of elocution, consisting in the right use of tropes and figures.
8. In astrology, an advantage which a planet has on account of its being in some particular place of the zodiac, or in a particular station in respect to other planets.
9. A general maxim, or principle. [Not used.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the quality of being worthy of esteem or respect; "it was beneath his dignity to cheat"; "showed his true dignity when under pressure" [syn: dignity, self-respect, self-regard, self-worth]
2: formality in bearing and appearance; "he behaved with great dignity" [syn: dignity, lordliness, gravitas]
3: high office or rank or station; "he respected the dignity of the emissaries"

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural -ties) Etymology: Middle English dignete, from Anglo-French digneté, from Latin dignitat-, dignitas, from dignus Date: 13th century 1. the quality or state of being worthy, honored, or esteemed 2. a. high rank, office, or position b. a legal title of nobility or honor 3. archaic dignitary 4. formal reserve or seriousness of manner, appearance, or language

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (pl. -ies) 1 a composed and serious manner or style. 2 the state of being worthy of honour or respect. 3 worthiness, excellence (the dignity of work). 4 a high or honourable rank or position. 5 high regard or estimation. Phrases and idioms: beneath one's dignity not considered worthy enough for one to do. stand on one's dignity insist (esp. by one's manner) on being treated with due respect. Etymology: ME f. OF digneté, dignité f. L dignitas -tatis f. dignus worthy

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Dignity Dig"ni*ty, n.; pl. Dignities. [OE. dignete, dignite, OF. dignet['e], dignit['e], F. dignit['e], fr. L. dignitas, from dignus worthy. See Dainty, Deign.] 1. The state of being worthy or honorable; elevation of mind or character; true worth; excellence. 2. Elevation; grandeur. The dignity of this act was worth the audience of kings. --Shak. 3. Elevated rank; honorable station; high office, political or ecclesiastical; degree of excellence; preferment; exaltation. --Macaulay. And the king said, What honor and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this? --Esth. vi. 3. Reuben, thou art my firstborn, . . . the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power. --Gen. xlix. 3. 4. Quality suited to inspire respect or reverence; loftiness and grace; impressiveness; stateliness; -- said of ??en, manner, style, etc. A letter written with singular energy and dignity of thought ??d language. --Macaulay. 5. One holding high rank; a dignitary. These filthy dreamers . . . speak evil of dignities. --Jude. 8. 6. Fundamental principle; axiom; maxim. [Obs.] Sciences concluding from dignities, and principles known by themselves. --Sir T. Browne. Syn: See Decorum. To stand upon one's dignity, to have or to affect a high notion of one's own rank, privilege, or character. They did not stand upon their dignity, nor give their minds to being or to seeming as elegant and as fine as anybody else. --R. G. White.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

1. If someone behaves or moves with dignity, they are calm, controlled, and admirable. ...her extraordinary dignity and composure. = poise N-UNCOUNT 2. If you talk about the dignity of people or their lives or activities, you mean that they are valuable and worthy of respect. ...the sense of human dignity. N-UNCOUNT: usu with supp 3. Your dignity is the sense that you have of your own importance and value, and other people's respect for you. She still has her dignity. = self-respect

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Rank, elevation, standing, station, place, greatness, eminence, exaltation, glory, honor, reputableness, respectability. 2. Stateliness, grandeur, majesty, nobleness, lofty bearing or conduct, elevation of aspect or deportment, dignified behavior, decorum. 3. Honor, preferment, high station or office. 4. Magistrate, dignitary, person in office. 5. Height, elevation, importance.

Foolish Dictionary

A narrow, unstable bearing which mental spindle-shanks try to stand upon when they have no other support.

Moby Thesaurus

Atticism, Establishment, VIP, address, appropriateness, augustness, baron, big gun, big man, big name, bigwig, brass, brass hat, buckram, cachet, celebrity, ceremonial, ceremoniousness, ceremony, chasteness, chastity, clarity, classicalism, classicism, clearness, comeliness, consequence, correctness, courtliness, decency, dignifiedness, dignitary, directness, discrimination, distinction, ease, elder, elegance, elegancy, elevation, eminence, esteem, ethicalness, ethics, etiquette, excellence, extrinsicality, face, fame, father, felicitousness, felicity, figure, finish, fittingness, flow, flowing periods, fluency, form, formality, formalization, glory, good taste, grace, gracefulness, gracility, grandeur, grandness, gravity, great man, greatness, hauteur, high place, honor, honorableness, impersonality, importance, important person, interests, kingliness, kudos, level, limpidity, lion, loftiness, lordliness, lords of creation, lucidity, magnate, magnificence, majesty, man of mark, memorability, merit, mogul, morality, nabob, name, naturalness, neatness, nobility, nobleness, notability, notable, noteworthiness, panjandrum, pellucidity, perfection, person of renown, personage, personality, perspicuity, pillar of society, plainness, poise, polish, pomp, pomposity, position, power, power elite, prestige, pride, pride of bearing, pride of place, primness, princeliness, prominence, propriety, proud bearing, purity, rank, refinement, regality, remarkableness, renown, reputation, repute, respectability, restraint, rigidness, ritual, rituality, ruling circle, sachem, salience, sedateness, seemliness, self-confidence, self-esteem, self-importance, self-regard, self-respect, simplicity, smoothness, sobriety, solemnity, somebody, something, standing, starchiness, state, stateliness, station, stature, status, stiffness, stiltedness, straightforwardness, stylization, sublimity, taste, tastefulness, terseness, the great, the top, top brass, top people, tycoon, unaffectedness, venerability, very important person, virtue, weight, worth, worthiness, worthy