Word of the Day:

: the obligation of honorable, generous, and responsible behavior associated with high rank or birth

"In the Robinson family's circles, public service had long been common; it connoted not personal ambition so much as noblesse oblige." (Connie Bruck, The New Yorker, July 23, 1990)

More example sentences

In French, "noblesse oblige" means literally "nobility obligates." French speakers transformed the phrase into a noun, which English speakers picked up in the 19th century. Then, as now, "noblesse oblige" referred to the unwritten obligation of people from a noble ancestry to act honorably and generously to others. Later, by extension, it also came to refer to the obligation of anyone who is in a better position than others -- due, for example, to high office or celebrity -- to act respectably and responsibly.