Definition of VIRTUOUSNESS

Examples of virtuous in a Sentence

In a kind of virtuous circle, the “second tier” schools got better as applications rose and they could become choosier in assembling a class—which in turn raised the quality of the whole experience on campus and made the school more attractive to both topflight professors and the next wave of applicants. —Nancy Gibbs et al., Time, 21 Aug. 2006
In its quest to create ice cream as voluptuous as butter and as virtuous as broccoli, the ice cream industry has probed the depths of the Arctic Ocean, studied the intimate structures of algae and foisted numerous failures on the American public. —Julia Moskin, New York Times, 26 July 2006
Children born into high-income households become part of a virtuous circle of success. Parents with university degrees tend to earn more, set higher educational goals for their children, and invest more time in the children's schooling than parents who have a high-school education or less. —Laura D'Andrea Tyson, BusinessWeek, 7 July 2003
We redefined virtue as health. And considering the probable state of our souls, this was not a bad move. By relocating the seat of virtue from the soul to the pecs, the abs and the coronary arteries, we may not have become the most virtuous people on earth, but we surely became the most desperate for grace. We spend $5 billion a year on our health-club memberships, $2 billion on vitamins, nearly $1 billion on home exercise equipment, and $6 billion on sneakers to wear out on our treadmills and StairMasters. —Barbara Ehrenreich, Utne Reader, May/June 1992
She felt that she had made a virtuous decision by donating the money to charity.
virtuous behavior is its own reward

Recent Examples of virtuous from the Web

To enjoy the spread without hurting your heart, pile your plate with salad and vegetables first, and stick to two bite-size spoonfuls of stuffing and other less virtuous dishes. 2.

— gina roberts-grey, Woman's Day, "5 Sneaky Heart Health Problems That Occur Around the Holidays", 28 June 2017
Many countries have broken the non-virtuous cycle of corruption by setting up special agencies to probe such wrongdoing and to help create a tipping point in public sentiments against graft.

— The Christian Science Monitor, "Why the US must honor corruption fighters", 2 June 2017
This creates the virtuous cycle of any investment learning curve:

— robinson meyer, The Atlantic, "'America's Pledge': Can States and Cities Really Address Climate Change?", 2 June 2017
Follow Stories Like This Sign Up Many countries have broken the non-virtuous cycle of corruption by setting up special agencies to probe such wrongdoing and to help create a tipping point in public sentiments against graft.

— The Christian Science Monitor, "Why the US must honor corruption fighters", 2 June 2017
In this case, virtuous leakers are also combating the disinformation campaign that seems to be coming from the Russians.

— julian zelizer, CNN, "Why Washington is leaking like a sieve", 31 May 2017
Be virtuous and get the melon and berries, or splurge on moist coconut cake with coconut crème.

— linda bladholm, miamiherald, "Where you can eat this, with a view ov Biscayne Bay", 31 May 2017
In Wharton’s day, this kind of life was coveted without being heralded as exactly virtuous.

— molly young, New York Times, "How Amanda Chantal Bacon Perfected the Celebrity Wellness Business", 25 May 2017
The Jeffersonians believed that prosperity through agricultural toil in particular made Americans virtuous.

— Longreads, "American Dolchstoss", 19 May 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of virtuous

see virtue

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First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

virtuous Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of virtuous

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