Upright
What it means
Honest, responsible, and guided by sound moral principles.
Reach for it when making a serious character judgment grounded in conduct
The upright official disclosed the private favor and refused it.
Words to choose between 6
| playful | |
|---|---|
| everyday | |
| professional | |
| formal |
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| literary |
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playful
Fits when informal praise for rule-following fits
Careful The label can imply rigidity or naivety.
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everyday
Fits when truth-telling is the precise virtue
Careful Honesty alone does not cover duty or fairness.
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professional
Fits when conduct follows defensible standards
Careful Ethical is less personal and may concern one decision.
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professional
Fits when stable standards guide choices
Careful Principled can describe rigid adherence to a bad principle.
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formal
Fits when integrity and duty deserve dignity
Careful Honorable can be status-laden.
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literary
Fits when broad moral goodness is intended
Careful Virtuous sounds moralizing and stronger.
Opposites 3
- corrupt
- dishonest
- unprincipled
Common phrases 3
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upright citizen
The novel's upright citizen admits the rule he once enforced was unfair.
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upright conduct
Upright conduct continues when public praise disappears.
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morally upright
Calling someone morally upright requires more than one generous gesture.
Word family 1
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Dvortygirl, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 Updated