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Dictionary

Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

piety en · NOUN

Pronunciation

  • [ˈpʰaɪ̯əɾɪi̯] t-flapping
  • /ˈpaɪ̯ɪɾi/ t-flapping
  • [ˈpʰaɪ̯ɪtʰɪi̯] without t-flapping
  • [ˈpʰaɪ̯ətʰɪi̯] without t-flapping
  • /ˈpaɪ̯ɪti/ without t-flapping
  • /ˈpaɪ̯əɾi/ t-flapping
  • (Southern-England) audio
  • /ˈpaɪ̯əti/ without t-flapping
  • [ˈpʰaɪ̯ɪɾɪi̯] t-flapping

Etymology

From Middle English piete, borrowed from Middle French pieté, from Latin pietās. See also the doublets pietà and pity. By surface analysis, pious + -ety.

Meanings

  1. (uncountable) Reverence and devotion to God.
    • Colleen's piety led her to make sacrifices that most people would not have made.
  2. (uncountable) Similar reverence to one's parents and family or to one's country.
    • patriotism as piety, when done right
  3. (countable) A devout or otherwise laudable act, thought, or statement.
    • Those who dwell outside of Western Establishment bastions are not idiots just because they do not mouth the pieties of GASP. Some of them can write very well. There are other traditions, you know. They could write for Wikipedia, if you let them. But such true openness and genuine tolerance is unacceptable, precisely because those other traditions fail to pay exclusive homage to GASP sources, through which—Wikipedians imagine—all the benefits of global civilization flow. 2025 September 30, Larry Sanger, “2. Enable competing articles.”, in larrysanger.org:
  4. (countable, uncountable) A devout or otherwise laudable act, thought, or statement. ▸ A platitude that may be empty or at least facile and undercommitted.
    • He was quick with the pieties about hard work, honest communication, active listening, and respecting others' viewpoints, but walking the walk is different from talking the talk.

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
pieties Number=Plur lexicographic
pietie alternative, obsolete lexicographic

Deriveds

filial piety · pietism · in piety · pietist · baroque piety · unpiety

Relateds

pious · pietà

Translations (60)

oc pietat (reverence and devotion to God) · eo pieco (reverence and devotion to God) · ru на́божность (reverence and devotion to God) · tr züht (reverence and devotion to God) · ca pietat (reverence and devotion to God) · tr hürmet (reverence to one's family) · hu áhítat (devout act or thought) · el ευσέβεια (reverence and devotion to God) · hi धार्मिकता (reverence and devotion to God) · hu vallásosság (reverence and devotion to God) · mk благоче́стие (reverence and devotion to God) · gl piedade (reverence and devotion to God) · kk құдайшылдық (reverence and devotion to God) · mi whakaponotanga (reverence and devotion to God) · pl pobożność (reverence and devotion to God) · it pietà (reverence and devotion to God) · tr saygı (reverence to one's family) · hy բարեպաշտություն (reverence and devotion to God) · ka ღვთისმოშიშობა (reverence and devotion to God) · ro evlavie (reverence and devotion to God) · gd cràbhadh (reverence and devotion to God) · ga cráifeacht (reverence and devotion to God) · cs nábožnost (reverence and devotion to God) · tr ihtiram (reverence to one's family) · fr piété (reverence and devotion to God) · ru благоче́стие (reverence and devotion to God) · sv fromhet (reverence and devotion to God) · es piedad (reverence and devotion to God) · ga beannaíocht (reverence and devotion to God) · tr sofuluk (reverence and devotion to God) · ar تَقْوَى (reverence and devotion to God) · ga crábhadh (reverence and devotion to God) · tr dindarlık (reverence and devotion to God) · fi hurskaus (reverence and devotion to God) · de Frömmigkeit (reverence and devotion to God) · yi פֿרומקייט (reverence and devotion to God) · mr धार्मिकता (reverence and devotion to God) · ar بِرّ (reverence to one's family) · grc εὐσέβεια (reverence and devotion to God) · sa धार्मिकता (reverence and devotion to God) · el σεβασμός (reverence to one's family) · de Pietät (reverence to one's family) · ja 篤信 (reverence and devotion to God) · ar تُقًى (devout act or thought) · bg набожност (reverence and devotion to God) · fi kunnioitus (reverence to one's family) · tr takva (reverence and devotion to God) · pl bogobojność (reverence and devotion to God) · cmn 虔誠 /虔诚 (reverence and devotion to God) · uk набо́жність (reverence and devotion to God) · ro pietate (reverence and devotion to God) · lv pietāte (reverence and devotion to God) · ka ღვთისმოსაობა (reverence and devotion to God) · pt piedade (reverence and devotion to God) · cs zbožnost (reverence and devotion to God) · ja 敬愛 (reverence to one's family) · gv craueeaght (reverence and devotion to God) · mk на́божност (reverence and devotion to God) · nl vroomheid (reverence and devotion to God) · fi kunnioitus (devout act or thought)