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Added 9 October 2026

dignity

/ˈdɪɡnɪti/ noun

In Latin: dignitās Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about dignity at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

The quality of being worthy of esteem or respect.
it was beneath his dignity to cheat
Formality in bearing and appearance.
he behaved with great dignity
High office or rank or station.
he respected the dignity of the emissaries

Origin

Inherited from Middle English dignyte, from Old French dignité, from Latin dignitās (“worthiness, merit, dignity, grandeur, authority, rank, office”), from dignus (“worthy, appropriate”), from Proto-Italic *degnos, from Proto-Indo-European *dḱ-nos, from *deḱ- (“to take”). See also decus (“honor, esteem”) and decet (“it is fitting”). Cognate to deign. Doublet of dainty. In this sense, displaced native Old English weorþsċipe, which became Modern English worship. It also displaced native Old English hād (“honor, dignity”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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