moral

Etymology

From Middle English moral, from Old French moral, from Latin mōrālis (“relating to manners or morals”) (first used by Cicero, to translate Ancient Greek ἠθικός (ēthikós, “moral”)), from mos (“manner, custom”).

adj

1. Of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behaviour, especially for teaching right behaviour.
   moral judgments; a moral poem
   a moral obligation
2. Conforming to a standard of right behaviour; sanctioned by or operative on one's conscience or ethical judgment.
   a moral action
3. Capable of right and wrong action.
   a moral agent
4. Probable but not proved.
   a moral certainty
5. Positively affecting the mind, confidence, or will.
   a moral victory; moral support

noun

1. (of a narrative) The ethical significance or practical lesson.
   The moral of The Boy Who Cried Wolf is that if you repeatedly lie, people won't believe you when you tell the truth.
   We protest against the principle that the world of pure comedy is one into which no moral enters. 1841, Thomas Macaulay, Comic Dramatists of the Restoration (printed in Edinburgh Review, January 1841)
2. (chiefly in the plural) Moral practices or teachings: modes of conduct.
   a candidate with strong morals
3. (obsolete) A morality play.
4. (slang, dated) A moral certainty.
5. (slang, dated) An exact counterpart.

verb

1. (intransitive) To moralize.