Meaning & use
moral instruction
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Meanings
noununcountable
Teaching or guidance about what is right and wrong, especially in how to behave toward others.
Grammar: Used as an uncountable noun: give moral instruction, receive moral instruction. Do not say 'a moral instruction' when you mean teaching in general.
Patterns
- give someone moral instruction
- receive moral instruction
- moral instruction in something
The school sees moral instruction as part of its duty, not just exam preparation.
Many parents rely on stories to provide moral instruction to young children.
nouncountable
A single piece of advice or a rule about right behavior.
Grammar: When you mean one specific piece of teaching, it is countable: a moral instruction, several moral instructions.
Patterns
- a moral instruction
- follow a moral instruction
The coach ended every training session with a simple moral instruction: respect your teammates.
He treated his grandfather's words as a moral instruction to live by.
Common combinations
- give moral instruction
- The novel does not give moral instruction directly; it lets readers draw their own conclusions.
- receive moral instruction
- Children in that community receive moral instruction at home and at religious school.
- a source of moral instruction
- Fables have long been a source of moral instruction for the young.
- moral instruction in schools
- Debates about moral instruction in schools often become political.
Synonyms and how they differ
- moral teaching
- Nearly the same, but 'teaching' is more common and less formal than 'instruction'.
- ethical guidance
- Focuses on advice about right conduct; slightly more formal and often used for professional contexts.
- moral education
- Refers to the whole process or subject, not a single lesson or piece of advice.
Word family
- moral adjective
- Relating to right and wrong behavior.
- morally adverb
- In a way that relates to right and wrong.
- instruct verb
- To teach someone or tell them what to do.
- instruction noun
- Teaching, or an order about what to do.
Commonly confused: moral instruction or moral?
moral instruction vs moral
As a noun, 'moral' means the lesson of a story; 'moral instruction' is the activity of teaching such lessons.
Practice
The charity provides moral instruction ___ young offenders.
Choose one answer.
'Provide something to someone' is the usual pattern, so 'to' fits. 'For' would suggest the instruction is done on their behalf rather than given to them, and 'with' and 'at' do not fit this structure.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “moral instruction”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.