ˈdignəd.ē, -ətē, -i noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English dignete, dignite, from Old French digneté, dignité, from Latin dignitat-, dignitas, from dignus worthy + -itat-, itas -ity — more at decent
1. : the quality or state of being worthy : intrinsic worth : excellence
the dignity of this act was worth the audience of kings — Shakespeare
all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights — U.N. Declaration of Human Rights
2. : the quality or state of being honored or esteemed : degree of esteem : honor
rose to the dignity of a judgeship
3.
a. : high rank, office, or position
aspir'd to dignity — Edmund Spenser
b. archaic : rank , degree
clay and clay differs in dignity , whose dust is both alike — Shakespeare
c. : a particular office, rank, or title of honor
Napoleon persuaded the Archduke Maximilian … to accept the Mexican imperial dignity — Times Literary Supplement
d. English law : a title of honor that is an incorporeal hereditament or real property
4. archaic
a. : one holding high rank : dignitary
in spite of pope or dignities of church — Shakespeare
b. : persons of high rank as a body
5. : formal reserve of manner, appearance, behavior, or language : behavior that accords with self-respect or with regard for the seriousness of occasion or purpose : gravity , poise
watched him kindly but with dignity , as well-treated animals who have an assured position always do — Mary Webb