mo ‧ ral ‧ i ‧ ty /məˈræləti, məˈrælɪti/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable]
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ moral , morals, ↑ morality ≠ ↑ immorality , ↑ moralist , ↑ amorality ; adjective : ↑ moral ≠ ↑ immoral , ↑ amoral , ↑ moralistic ; verb : ↑ moralize ; adverb : ↑ morally ≠ ↑ immorally ]
1 . beliefs or ideas about what is right and wrong and about how people should behave:
sexual morality
public/private/personal morality
the decline in standards of personal morality
The authorities are protectors of public morality.
conventional/traditional morality
a lack of concern for conventional morality
2 . the degree to which something is right or acceptable OPP immorality
morality of
a discussion on the morality of abortion
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THESAURUS
▪ morals all of the basic ideas that a person or group of people has about what is morally good and right:
The man has no morals at all.
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He felt that society's morals were declining, as shown by increases in public drunkenness and violence.
▪ morality ideas about what is right and wrong, and what is acceptable behaviour - used when talking about whether it is right to do a particular thing, or when talking about moral standards generally:
Several advisers had very different views on the morality of the action (=on whether it was morally right) .
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They wanted to ban the film, on the grounds of protecting public morality.
▪ ethics moral rules for deciding what is right and wrong - often used about this as a subject that people study and discuss:
Doctors must follow a strict code of ethics.
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I'm not sure about the ethics of using human embryos for research (=I'm not sure that it is morally right) .
▪ principles moral rules or beliefs about what is right and wrong, which make you decide what you should and should not do:
He stuck to his principles and spoke out against injustice, despite the risks.
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It's against their principles to kill any living thing.
▪ values your ideas about what is important in life:
During the 1960s, many young people rejected their parents' values.
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He stressed the importance of spiritual values.
▪ scruples beliefs about what is right and wrong that prevent you from doing bad things:
She had no scruples about listening to their private conversation.
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My scruples would not allow me to interfere in their relationship.