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turpitude - 5 dictionary results

tur⋅pi⋅tude

  [tur-pi-tood, -tyood]
Use turpitude in a Sentence
–noun
1. vile, shameful, or base character; depravity.
2. a vile or depraved act.
Origin:
1480–90; < L turpitūdō, equiv. to turpi(s) base, vile + -tūdō -tude

Synonyms:
1. wickedness, vice, vileness, wrongdoing.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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tur·pi·tude   (tûr'pĭ-tōōd', -tyōōd')   
n.  
  1. Depravity; baseness.
  2. A base act.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin turpitūdō, from turpis, shameful.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Turpitude

Tur"pi*tude\, n. [L. turpitudo, from turpis foul, base.] Inherent baseness or vileness of principle, words, or actions; shameful wickedness; depravity. --Shak.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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turpitude 
"depravity, infamy," 1490, from M.Fr. turpitude (1417), from L. turpitudinem (nom. turpitudo) "baseness," from turpis "vile, ugly, base, shameful," used in both the moral and the physical senses; of unknown origin. Perhaps originally "what one turns away from" (cf. L. trepit "he turns").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: tur·pi·tude
Pronunciation: 't&r-p&-"tüd, -"tyüd
Function: noun
: inherent baseness or depravity; also : a base act
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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