chastity

noun

chas·​ti·​ty ˈcha-stə-tē 

1

: the quality or state of being chaste: such as

a

: abstention from unlawful sexual intercourse

b

: abstention from all sexual intercourse

The priest took a vow of chastity.

c

: purity in conduct and intention

sought to protect her threatened chastity

d

: restraint and simplicity in design or expression

… describes the familiar campaigns with an admirable chastity of diction.

—Richard Brookhiser

2

: personal integrity

Synonyms

• purity

Examples of chastity in a Sentence

a saint who is often held up as a model of chastity

vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience

Recent Examples on the Web

The Sisters of Mercy are an international community of Roman Catholic women who dedicate their lives to the Gospel of Jesus and take vows of poverty, chastity, obedience and service. —Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 2 July 2025

The residents of the house had taken vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. —Raul A. Reyes, NBC news, 29 June 2025

He’s taken vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience and lived in a community with other priests. —Erika Page, Christian Science Monitor, 8 May 2025

The dismissal came after a more than year long dispute between the nuns and the diocese that began when Olson investigated a report that the nuns’ leader, the Rev. Mother Teresa Agnes Gerlach, broke her chastity vows with a priest from outside the diocese. —Elizabeth Campbell, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English chastete, chastite, borrowed from Anglo-French casthetet, chasteté, borrowed from Latin castitāt-, castitās, from castus "free from, free from vice, chaste" + -itāt-, -itās

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing chastity

• chastity belt
• vow of chastity

Rhymes for chastity

• unchastity

Kids Definition

chastity

noun

chas·​ti·​ty ˈchas-tət-ē 

: the quality or state of being chaste