Definition of COMPORTMENT

Choose the Right Synonym for comport

Verb

behave, conduct, deport, comport, acquit mean to act or to cause oneself to do something in a certain way. behave may apply to the meeting of a standard of what is proper or decorous. the children behaved in church conduct implies action or behavior that shows the extent of one's power to control or direct oneself. conducted herself with unfailing good humor deport implies behaving so as to show how far one conforms to conventional rules of discipline or propriety. the hero deported himself in accord with the code of chivalry comport suggests conduct measured by what is expected or required of one in a certain class or position. comported themselves as gentlemen acquit applies to action under stress that deserves praise or meets expectations. acquitted herself well in her first assignment

Comport and Behavior

With its prefix com-, "with", the Latin word comportare meant "to bring together". So it's easy to see how in English we could say that a college's policy comports with state law, or that a visit to your parents doesn't comport with your other weekend plans, or that your aunt and uncle won't listen to anything on TV that doesn't comport with their prejudices. The "behave" sense of the word comes through French, and its essential meaning is how a person "carries" him- or herself. So you may say, for instance, that your 17-year-old comported himself well (for once!) at the wedding reception, or that an ambassador always comports herself with dignity—that is, her comportment is always dignified—or that your class comported itself in a way that was a credit to the school.

Examples of comport in a Sentence

Verb an outfit that most definitely does not comport with the company's guidelines for dress-down days the grieving relatives comported themselves with grace and dignity during that difficult time

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb How people comport themselves in public life — as in private life — matters a lot. — Jay Nordlinger, National Review, "Meet the in-laws, &c.," 23 Nov. 2020 The tasting was designed to comport with guidance to prevent the spread of COVID-19. — Richard Ruelas, The Arizona Republic, "Best Arizona wines: These are the 2020 azcentral Arizona Wine Competition winners," 12 Nov. 2020 The fact that recent economic history does not comport with his views, however, only addresses half of the problem. — Richard Morrison, National Review, "Davos Chief’s Call for Higher Taxes, More Regulation Would Mean Less Prosperity," 22 Oct. 2020 The rest went to support for COVID-19 testing, buying personal protective equipment, retrofits of buildings to comport with social distancing, hazard pay, and other expenses related to fighting COVID-19. — Lydia Depillis, ProPublica, "The Big Corporate Rescue and the America That’s Too Small to Save," 12 Sep. 2020 In mid-July, the website said the show had adopted health and safety standards that comport with local and international guidelines and recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. — David Lyons, sun-sentinel.com, "Fort Lauderdale boat show seeks green light to go on as scheduled," 4 Sep. 2020 The demographic breakdown of the semi-finalist pool needed to largely comport with Michigan breakdowns found in the 2018 2018 American Community Survey, in conjunction with the U.S. Census. — Dave Boucher, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan just picked 13 people to lead redistricting efforts. See who they are," 17 Aug. 2020 An earlier speaker mentioned that the memorial service has to stick to a strict schedule to comport with social distancing rules. — NBC News, "Social distancing efforts inside, outside George Floyd's memorial service," 5 June 2020 One of the great postwar temptations for storytellers is to equip their characters with a moral clarity that comports with the judgments of history. — Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, "Children’s Books: The Island Girl & the Royal Plot," 21 June 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun As an abattoir of reason, the ad at least comports with the spirit of this bailout. — Washington Post, "Ohio’s Great Chinese Power Conspiracy Theory," 4 Sep. 2019 Trump has authored Twitter posts before about sanctions that didn’t comport with U.S. policy and that aides struggled to explain. — The Washington Post, The Mercury News, "White House did not impose new sanctions on Iran," 21 June 2019 Trump has authored Twitter posts before about sanctions that didn’t comport with U.S. policy and that aides struggled to explain. — The Washington Post, The Mercury News, "White House did not impose new sanctions on Iran," 21 June 2019 Does that comport with your own experience with the violent crime increase, sheriff? — Fox News, "Morgan Freeman's team accuses CNN of defamation," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'comport.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.