as in advantage
a quality that gives something special worth
the cardinal virtue of wool is that it retains its insulating properties even when wet
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Recent Examples of cardinal virtue
Tolerance became the cardinal virtue of modern liberalism, but tolerance cannot sustain a civilization.
—
Carolyn McKinney, Boston Herald, 22 Sep. 2025
Practical wisdom, justice, and AI The cardinal virtues of practical wisdom and justice are the habits for deciding, fairly, what needs to be done.
—Andrew Abela, Forbes.com, 24 July 2025
Aquinas also noted that each of these four cardinal virtues had several smaller virtues associated with them.
—Andrew Abela, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
Doubt is a cardinal virtue in the sciences, which advance through skeptics’ willingness to question the experts.
—Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2020
Breaching tennis’ cardinal virtues of self-sufficiency and autonomy, the coach begins by telling this emotional woman to calm down.
—Jon Wertheim, SI.com, 11 Apr. 2018
Dialogue is one of their cardinal virtues, and most seemed determined to give Trump a hearing.
—Time, 25 Jan. 2018
Carolyn McKinney, Boston Herald, 22 Sep. 2025
Practical wisdom, justice, and AI The cardinal virtues of practical wisdom and justice are the habits for deciding, fairly, what needs to be done.
—Andrew Abela, Forbes.com, 24 July 2025
Aquinas also noted that each of these four cardinal virtues had several smaller virtues associated with them.
—Andrew Abela, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024
Doubt is a cardinal virtue in the sciences, which advance through skeptics’ willingness to question the experts.
—Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2020
Breaching tennis’ cardinal virtues of self-sufficiency and autonomy, the coach begins by telling this emotional woman to calm down.
—Jon Wertheim, SI.com, 11 Apr. 2018
Dialogue is one of their cardinal virtues, and most seemed determined to give Trump a hearing.
—Time, 25 Jan. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cardinal virtue
Noun
-
The Monarchs banged out 10 hits, stole three bases and took advantage of nine walks, six errors, four hit batters and three wild pitches.—
Don Norcross,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
31 May 2026
-
Coffey added eight rebounds and continues to further take advantage of the opportunity she has been given with her hometown team.—
Mike Cook,
Twin Cities,
30 May 2026
Noun
-
For museums and galleries, diversity replaced criticality as the primary criterion of social distinction, the way to demonstrate participation in a progressive critique of the social order.—
Katy Siegel,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
-
The nearest town has the odd distinction of being renowned for ox-cart making.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 June 2026
Noun
-
Through its characters, the book stages an argument about the virtues of various types of maps—those that are measured, those that are recollected, those that are dreamed.—
Katy Waldman,
New Yorker,
1 June 2026
-
In a world of volatility, interdependence, and unintended consequences, Humility is not a soft virtue.—
Mary Crossan,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
Noun
-
Winger and Dawkins arrived in 2023, and one of the underlying principles of their plan was, and remains, to correctly evaluate their own players and make those evaluations before their players lost their trade value.—
Josh Robbins,
New York Times,
31 May 2026
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The answer increasingly lies not in export volume alone, but in supply chain integration, local collaboration, sustainability standards and long-term strategic value.—
Li Jun,
Footwear News,
31 May 2026
Noun
-
Three special honors will be handed during ceremony — two Career Achievement recipients, presented to film editors of outstanding merit and the Golden Eddie Filmmaker of the Year honor, presented to a filmmaker who exemplifies distinguished achievement in the art and business of film.—
Erik Pedersen,
Deadline,
3 June 2026
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The company and its advocates would rather debate the merits of one particular study instead of [ShotSpotter parent company] SoundThinking's track record of evading evidence based accountability in Chicago.—
Asal Rezaei,
CBS News,
3 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cardinal virtue.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cardinal%20virtue. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
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