I. vice ˈvīs noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old French, from Latin vitium fault, blemish, crime, vice — more at with
1.
a. : moral depravity or corruption : evil conduct or habits : indulgence of degrading appetites : wickedness
the true lover of the human race is surely he who can put up with it in all its forms, in vice as well as in virtue — John Galsworthy
b. : a wrong, degrading, or immoral habit or practice : evil behavior of a particular or accustomed kind
tainted with the vice of homosexuality — R.A.Hall b. 1911
c. : a fault or shortcoming that becomes a foible : a constitutional failing : a moral flaw
the local vice of overstatement — W.L.Sperry
2.
a. : a blemish or imperfection in something : defect
the vice of his conception is that it overlooks the serious consequences
b.
(1) : an imperfection in merchandise or in a contract serious enough to invalidate the contract or a sale of the goods
(2) : a fault or imperfection which because inherent in the nature of the goods or material often cannot be insured against
3. : a physical imperfection, deformity, or taint
4.
a. often capitalized : a character representing one of the vices in an English morality play
b. : buffoon , jester
5. : habitual undesirable conduct in a domestic animal ; specifically : an abnormal behavior pattern (as in cannibalism of poultry or the sucking vice of calves) detrimental to the health or usefulness of an individual or group and commonly representing perversion or overdevelopment of normal instincts or reflexes — compare crib-biting
6. : injurious capacity : harmfulness
7. : sexual immorality ; especially : prostitution
Synonyms: see fault
II. vice noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English vis, vice, from Middle French vis, viz — more at vise
1. : a winding stairway
2. obsolete
a. : a mechanical device working an apparatus
b. : screw
c. : a stopper that screws into an opening (as of a cask)
3. chiefly Britain : vise
4. : a device for making the leads for leaded windows
III. vice transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
chiefly Britain : vise
IV. vice noun
( -s )
Etymology: vice-
: proxy , substitute
V. vi·ce ˈvīsē, -si noun
( -s )
Etymology: Latin, abl. of vicis change, alternation, stead — more at week
1. chiefly Scotland : place , stead
2. chiefly Scotland : a turn in sequence
VI. vice preposition
Etymology: Latin, abl. of vicis
: in the place of : in the stead of : succeeding
John Doe was appointed postmaster vice Richard Roe, resigned