ethical
Americanadjective
-
pertaining to or dealing with morals or the principles of morality; pertaining to right and wrong in conduct.
-
being in accordance with the rules or standards for right conduct or practice, especially the standards of a profession.
It was not considered ethical for physicians to advertise.
- Antonyms:
- immoral
-
(of drugs) sold only upon medical prescription.
adjective
-
in accordance with principles of conduct that are considered correct, esp those of a given profession or group
-
of or relating to ethics
-
(of a medicinal agent) available legally only with a doctor's prescription or consent
Other Word Forms
- ethicality noun
- ethically adverb
- ethicalness noun
- hyperethical adjective
- nonethical adjective
- pseudoethical adjective
- superethical adjective
- unethical adjective
Etymology
Origin of ethical
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The employment of fully autonomous weapons presents real ethical quandaries, though the technology isn’t ready for that.
In a statement to the BBC, Church House said it accepted "bookings from organisations that meet our ethical lettings policy, subject to availability".
From BBC
We should not seek ethical guidance from addled entertainers, but we can find insights into our temporal and spiritual condition.
Legal and ethical issues are governed by standards set by society, but moral choices, for the most part, are for you alone to decide.
From MarketWatch
Along the way, he realizes that the ethical significance of his investigation is much greater than he first imagined.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
