Ethical

//ˈɛθɪkəl// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An ethical drug, one only dispensed on the prescription of a physician.
Adjective
  1. 1
    Of or relating to the study of ethics. not-comparable

    "The philosopher Kant is particularly known for his ethical writings."

  2. 2
    Of or relating to the accepted principles of right and wrong, especially those of some organization or profession. not-comparable

    "All employees must familiarize themselves with our ethical guidelines."

  3. 3
    Morally approvable; good. comparable

    "We are trying to decide what the most ethical course of action would be."

  4. 4
    Only dispensed on the prescription of a physician. not-comparable

    "In most jurisdictions, morphine is classified as an ethical drug."

Adjective
  1. 1
    conforming to accepted standards of social or professional behavior wordnet
  2. 2
    adhering to ethical and moral principles wordnet
  3. 3
    of or relating to the philosophical study of ethics wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
trustworthyaxiologicalblamelesschastechristianclean

Example

More examples

"It is not ethical for a doctor to reveal confidences."

Etymology

From ethic + -al, from Late Latin ethicus (“moral, ethical”), from Ancient Greek ἠθικός (ēthikós, “of or for morals, moral, expressing character”), from ἦθος (êthos, “character, moral nature”).

Related phrases

ethical Ten Commandmentsethical egoismethical investmentethical programmingethical screenethical systemethical wallmeta-ethicalethical dative

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.