Meaning & use
immoral
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Meanings
adjectivecomparabledisapproving
Going against what most people accept as right and fair behavior; morally wrong.
Grammar: Works before a noun or after a verb: an immoral act, or it is immoral to lie.
Patterns
- it is immoral to do something
- immoral of someone
Many people think it is immoral to ignore starving children.
The judge called the scheme immoral as well as illegal.
It was immoral of him to take credit for her work.
adjectivebefore a nounold-fashioneddisapproving
Describing people who live in a way that others see as sinful, especially in sexual matters.
Grammar: Often used in religious or old-fashioned contexts.
The preacher warned against an immoral life.
Strict neighbors branded the couple immoral.
The old novel portrays an immoral nobleman.
Word forms
| comparative | more immoral |
|---|---|
| superlative | most immoral |
Common combinations
- immoral behavior
- The company fired him for immoral behavior.
- deeply immoral
- She found the practice deeply immoral.
- immoral and illegal
- The scam was both immoral and illegal.
- immoral act
- Lying under oath is an immoral act.
- considered immoral
- Slavery is now considered immoral everywhere.
Synonyms and how they differ
- unethical
- It is used for professional or business conduct that breaks accepted rules, and sounds less personal than immoral.
- wicked
- It is stronger and more dramatic, suggesting deliberate evil.
- corrupt
- It suggests dishonesty, especially by people in power.
- wrong
- It is the plain, general word for anything not right.
Opposites
Word family
- immorality noun
- wrong behavior or the quality of being immoral
- immorally adverb
- in a morally wrong way
- moral adjective
- concerned with right and wrong
- amoral adjective
- having no sense of right and wrong
Commonly confused: immoral or amoral? immoral or immortal?
immoral vs amoral
An immoral person knows right from wrong but acts badly, while an amoral person has no concern for morality at all.
immoral vs immortal
Immortal means living forever, and is spelled with a t.
Practice
Which word describes someone who knows what is right but chooses to do wrong?
Choose one answer.
Immoral means acting against moral standards. Amoral means without any moral sense, immortal means living forever, and unmoral is a rare synonym for amoral.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “immoral”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.