propriety
/pɹəˈpɹaɪəti/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.79 in modern English
16
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
4
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The particular character or essence of someone or something; individuality.
Countable; Obsolete; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "I was fearful of giving You a very sensible Disgust, in making You seem the Propriety of one Man, when You know Yourself ordained for the Comfort and Refreshment of Multitudes."
- "This ſweet word, I will be your God, implies, 1. Propriety, that all that is in God ſhall be ours; his love ours, his Spirit ours, his mercy ours."
- "Thoſe who ought to be the guardians of propriety are often the perverters of it. Hence Accidence for Accidents, Prepoſtor for Prepoſitor and Conſtur for Conſtrue[…]"
- "I find such a pleasure, sir, in obeying your commands, that I take care to observe them without ever debating their propriety."
- "Now, if we may, with propriety, refer to the people one question, why may we not, with equal propriety, refer another?"
- "“Divine receptacle of excellence, let it not be deemed impertinent, or deviating from the rules of propriety, if I propound one queſtion which now labours in my breaſt; aſſuring me firſt, you will not let the ſceptre of true judgment depart from your right hand.”"
Etymology
From late Middle English proprietee, propretee, propriete (“ownership”), borrowed from Anglo-Norman propreté, Middle French proprieté, from Latin proprietās. By surface analysis, prop(e)r + -iety. Doublet of property.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *preyH-, proprietee, propreté, proprieté, proprietās
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /pɹəˈpɹaɪəti/