formality
noun
Simple meaning
Something said or done as a matter of form.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
fawrmaluhteeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
fɔɹˈmæləti
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
uncountable
The state of being formal.
Something said or done as a matter of form.
countable
A specific requirement for obtaining a legal status, conducting a transaction, etc.
A customary ritual without substance, real consequence, or unique meaning.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Typical Use
- Primarily written
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The state of being formal.
Used this way, formality is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use formality
- “The formality of his voice made the others pay him close attention.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
A requirement of etiquette or custom.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
The doctrine that formal structure rather than content is what should be represented.
Concerned with or characterized by rigorous adherence to recognized forms (especially in religion or art).
With official authorization.
Make formal or official.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Antonyms
Sense: being formal
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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.