1
as in honorable
conforming to a high standard of morality or virtue
the ethical behavior expected of every member of the police force
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in honest
following the accepted rules of moral conduct
the ethical course of action for the senator who lied to Congress would be to resign
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in moral
guided by or in accordance with one's sense of right and wrong
ethical writers do not use the words of other writers without giving them proper credit
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ethical
Last year, the government issued its first ethical guidelines for research in this area.
—
Kristie Lu Stout, CNN Money, 20 July 2025
The battle for ethical government in the 1970s was waged by Gov. Reubin Askew.
—Lonnie Groot, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 July 2025
When one of the dead unexpectedly revives, the community fractures, and the Witches assistant becomes their greatest enemy, unleashing an ethical and emotional struggle were accepting death or defying it will change their lives forever.
—John Hopewell, Variety, 17 July 2025
Then, after learning about the dark reality of animal agriculture, and its devastating environmental impact, my choice was cemented for my personal health but also ethical and moral compass.
—Brianna J. Heath, Essence, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for ethical
Kristie Lu Stout, CNN Money, 20 July 2025
The battle for ethical government in the 1970s was waged by Gov. Reubin Askew.
—Lonnie Groot, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 July 2025
When one of the dead unexpectedly revives, the community fractures, and the Witches assistant becomes their greatest enemy, unleashing an ethical and emotional struggle were accepting death or defying it will change their lives forever.
—John Hopewell, Variety, 17 July 2025
Then, after learning about the dark reality of animal agriculture, and its devastating environmental impact, my choice was cemented for my personal health but also ethical and moral compass.
—Brianna J. Heath, Essence, 16 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for ethical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ethical
Adjective
-
Michael Roth, the president of Wesleyan University in Connecticut, has taken the harder and more honorable route.—
John T. Shaw,
Twin Cities,
10 July 2025
-
Our leadership spends its time implying anyone with origins south of our border is less than honorable and must be deported regardless of their contributions, just to feel powerful.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
10 July 2025
Adjective
-
Be honest about systems that are no longer serving their purpose.—
Forbes.com,
Forbes.com,
15 July 2025
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Renegade Paws Rescue's honest assessment of Igor's personality garnered the attention of thousands of animal lovers, who shared the post over 35,000 times.—
Moná Thomas,
People.com,
14 July 2025
Adjective
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America was headed toward the Civil War and both sides knew the manpower and land would be valuable, to say nothing of the moral implications.—
David Ubben,
New York Times,
11 July 2025
-
By sheer coincidence, Clark starts writing articles about the moral inappropriateness of Batman’s vigilante justice.—
Will Harris,
EW.com,
11 July 2025
Adjective
-
The same's true for someone who is retired and taking taxable withdrawals from traditional 401(k) plans.—
Susan Tompor,
Freep.com,
14 July 2025
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Among the property's true highlights is its exceptional dining scene— beloved by both discerning locals and hotel guests.—
Erica Wertheim Zohar,
Forbes.com,
14 July 2025
Adjective
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Reeling from scandals in the 1870s, baseball’s owners consciously sought to make the sport respectable by broadening its upper- and middle-class fan-base.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
23 July 2025
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Despite that streak ending, Swag had a more than respectable opening, debuting with 163,000 overall units on 198.77 million streams, per Billboard.—
Ethan Millman,
HollywoodReporter,
20 July 2025
Adjective
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The documents included emails, personal essays and other academic records, which showed Crooks to be a conscientious and intelligent college student with an interest in engineering as well as a clear skepticism of the federal government and corporations.—
Emily Mae Czachor
July 13,
CBS News,
13 July 2025
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More than 70% of participants were classified as open-minded, conscientious, and emotionally stable, suggesting the sample may not reflect the broader personality distribution in the general population, the authors noted.—
Brian Mastroianni,
Health,
9 July 2025
Adjective
-
And, the embroidery on the pillowcases adds a nice touch.—
Shalwah Evans,
People.com,
14 July 2025
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The units also vary in shape: the cube is nice for nightstands, while the wider grand size works well on large dressers.—
Jamie Fischer,
Better Homes & Gardens,
14 July 2025
Adjective
-
Chef-owner Miguel Angel Jimenez is well worth consulting for the night’s specials and a wine from the impressively deep good list.—
John Mariani,
Forbes.com,
16 July 2025
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But that wasn’t enough for a gambler who watched him best Paul Skenes.—
Maria Torres,
New York Times,
15 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ethical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ethical. Accessed 26 Jul. 2025.
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