nobility
pronunciation
How to pronounce nobility in British English:
UK [nəʊˈbɪləti]
How to pronounce nobility in American English:
US [noʊˈbɪləti]
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- Noun:
- a privileged class holding hereditary titles
- the quality of being exalted in character or ideals or conduct
- the state of being of noble birth
Word Origin
- nobility (n.)
- mid-14c., "quality of being excellent or rare," from Old French nobilite "high rank; dignity, grace; great deed" (12c., Modern French nobilité), and directly from Latin nobilitatem (nominative nobilitas) "celebrity, fame; high birth; excellence, superiority; the nobles," from nobilis "well-known, prominent" (see noble (adj.)). Meaning "quality of being of noble rank or birth" is attested from late 14c.; sense of "noble class collectively" is from 1520s.
Example
- 1. In 1442 , a daughter of danish nobility , brita tott , married into the swedish royal family .
- 2. It symbolizes power nobility luxury and ambition .
- 3. It is partly because it is so easy to be taken in by a facade of nobility that a psychological inquiry , such as I have been attempting , is worth making .
- 4. I believe in the nobility of duncan 's loyalty , and his enthusiasm .
- 5. But he was not a member of the nobility , and that would ordinarily have eliminated him from consideration .