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noble

adjective · noun

Simple meaning

Having honorable qualities.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

nohbuhl

Say the bold part a little louder.

US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈnoʊbəl

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.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

adjective

  1. Having honorable qualities; having moral eminence and freedom from anything petty, mean or dubious in conduct and character.

  2. Of exalted rank; of or relating to the nobility; distinguished from the masses by birth, station, or title; highborn.

  3. Grand; stately; magnificent; splendid.

noun

  1. A number of places in the United States

  2. A number of other townships in the United States, listed under Noble Township.

  3. An aristocrat; one of aristocratic blood.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B1 · Intermediate
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Having honorable qualities; having moral eminence and freedom from anything petty, mean or dubious in conduct and character.

Used this way, noble 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.

More ways to use noble

  • “He made a noble effort to help the struggling family in their time of need.”

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Having honorable qualities

noble character

Number

noble family

Other combinations

noble lordnoble birthnoble friendnoble lady

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • noble canenounCompound term

    Sugarcanes representing the highest development of the species.

  • noble gasnounCompound term

    Any of the chemically inert gaseous elements of the helium group in the periodic table.

  • noble-mindednessnounCompound term

    Elevated ideals or conduct.

  • noble metalnounCompound term

    Any metal that is resistant to corrosion or oxidation.

  • danseur noblenounCompound term

    A male ballet dancer who is the partner of a ballerina.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: having honorable qualities

majestic

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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.