righteous

1 of 2

adjective

righ·​teous ˈrī-chəs 

1

: acting in accord with divine or moral law : free from guilt or sin

a righteous person

leads a righteous life

2

a

: morally right or justifiable

a righteous decision/judgment/cause

… the movie takes a righteous approach vis-à-vis this Catholic sect's transgressions.

—Peter Debruge

b

: arising from an outraged sense of justice or morality

righteous indignation

Let betrayal forge our resolve. … In this extraordinary moment, righteous anger is not only justified—it is necessary.

—Tony D'Andrea

3

slang : genuine, excellent

righteously adverb

righteousness noun

righteousness

2 of 2

noun

righ·​teous·​ness

plural -es

1

: the quality or state of being righteous : conformity to the divine or the moral law : rectitude, uprightness

walking before thee in holiness and righteousness all our days

—Book of Common Prayer

belief that righteousness lies on the side of … property

—H. L. Matthews

2

obsolete : a righteous act, deed, or quality : righteous conduct

all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags

—Isaiah 64:6 (Authorized Version)

3

: the quality or state of being rightful or just

the righteousness of one's claim

4

: the state of acceptance with God : a right relationship to God : justification

Synonyms of righteous

Adjective

• honorable
• ethical
• honest
• true
• nice
• good
• moral

Choose the Right Synonym for righteous

moral, ethical, virtuous, righteous, noble mean conforming to a standard of what is right and good.

moral implies conformity to established sanctioned codes or accepted notions of right and wrong.

the basic moral values of a community

ethical may suggest the involvement of more difficult or subtle questions of rightness, fairness, or equity.

committed to the highest ethical principles

virtuous implies moral excellence in character.

not a religious person, but virtuous nevertheless

righteous stresses guiltlessness or blamelessness and often suggests the sanctimonious.

wished to be righteous before God and the world

noble implies moral eminence and freedom from anything petty, mean, or dubious in conduct and character.

had the noblest of reasons for seeking office

Examples of righteous in a Sentence

Adjective

The mix of Yorkshire-inherited bluntness and a caustic, chirpy South London cynicism (vividly parodied and perhaps too endearingly celebrated in the voice of Dora Chance, narrator of Wise Children) stops her from sounding righteous or dogmatic. —Hermione Lee, Times Literary Supplement, 19 June 1992

I didn't know until long after I was grown that Grandpa Durham—that stern and righteous Baptist—sometimes made persimmon beer and cooled it in the cistern. —Jim W. Corder, Chronicle of a Small Town, 1989

He was foreman at Lyman's North End foundry, the largest stove-making foundry in the city, and had risen in eleven years, despite his lung ailment, from apprentice to moulder to chief grievance spokesman, a voice of righteous reason from below. —William Kennedy, Harper's, March 1988

The Believers tried to lead a simple, righteous life, practicing pacifism and confession of sins and recognizing the equality of all humankind. —Robert P. Emlen, Natural History, September 1987

a righteous man can be trusted to act honorably regardless of the circumstances

righteous behavior is its own reward

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The portrait of America as an imperial power cuts against its self-image as a righteous cradle of democracy. —Ta-Nehisi Coates, Vanity Fair, 15 June 2026

Tony Kushner's screenplay turns the thickets of policymaking into a righteous sort of poetry. —Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly, 13 June 2026

What a righteous rock-star friendship this is. —Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 8 June 2026

The South Side once contained a lot of those tragically disappointing high-rises — the Robert Taylor Homes, Stateway Gardens, and Harold Ickes Homes, all demolished in spasms of righteous destruction. —Justin Davidson, Curbed, 4 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

alteration of earlier rightuous, alteration of Middle English rightwise, rightwos, from Old English rihtwīs, from riht, noun, right + wīs wise

Noun

alteration of earlier rightwiseness, from Middle English rightwisenes, from Old English rihtwīsnes, from rihtwīs + -nes -ness

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing righteous

• self-righteous

Rhymes for righteous

• unrighteous

Kids Definition

righteous

adjective

righ·​teous ˈrī-chəs 

1

: acting rightly : upright

2

a

: according to what is right

righteous actions

b

: caused by an insult to one's sense of what is right

righteous anger

righteously adverb

righteousness noun