categorical imperative
noun
Simple meaning
A fundamental ethical principle intended as a guide for determining whether any contemplated action is morally right.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
katuhgahrihkuhlihmpehruhtivSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
kætəˈɡɑɹɪkəlɪmˈpɛɹətɪv
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
ethics
A fundamental ethical principle intended as a guide for determining whether any contemplated action is morally right, based on the concept that an action is good or bad in and of itself regardless of what the actor's aims or preferences are.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
This meaning: (ethics) A fundamental ethical principle intended as a guide for determining whether any contemplated action is morally right, based on the concept that an action is good or bad in and of itself regardless of what the actor's aims or preferences are.
Used this way, categorical imperative is a reasonably familiar word with a mildly favourable edge. It turns up most in ethics or values contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Positive and appreciative
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Ethics/values
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.