Meaning & use
noble
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Meanings
adjectivecomparableapproving
Showing high moral quality through courage, honesty, generosity, or unselfish purpose.
Grammar: Used before nouns or after linking verbs: a noble choice; the choice was noble.
Patterns
- a noble act
- a noble cause
- it is noble of someone to do something
It was noble of her to admit the mistake before anyone else was blamed.
He gave up a comfortable job for the noble cause of rural health care.
Forgiving an enemy can be a noble and difficult decision.
nouncountable
A person born into or holding a rank of high social status, often with an inherited title.
Grammar: Countable; often contrasts with commoners in historical contexts.
Patterns
- a noble of high rank
- nobles and commoners
The palace gates opened for visiting nobles from neighboring kingdoms.
In the novel, a young noble questions the privileges of his birth.
Tax records listed local nobles who owned large estates.
adjectivebefore a nounold-fashioned
Belonging to an aristocratic family or class with traditional titles and high social rank.
Grammar: Usually placed directly before a noun: noble birth, not normally after a linking verb in modern use.
Patterns
- noble birth
- a noble family
- noble blood
She was born into a noble family with centuries of public service.
The museum displays jewelry once owned by noble households.
His noble ancestry did not protect him from scandal.
Word forms
| comparative | nobler |
|---|---|
| superlative | noblest |
| noun plural | nobles |
Common combinations
- noble cause
- Volunteers worked for the noble cause of protecting coastal wildlife.
- noble deed
- Returning the wallet anonymously was a quiet noble deed.
- noble sacrifice
- The story remembers her noble sacrifice during the flood.
- noble birth
- Noble birth once determined access to education and power.
Synonyms and how they differ
- honorable
- Honorable emphasizes moral respectability and keeping promises; noble adds a stronger idea of elevated character.
- virtuous
- Virtuous stresses moral goodness in behavior, while noble can suggest inspiring courage or generosity.
- dignified
- Dignified describes calm, serious self-respect; noble is broader and often includes unselfish action.
- aristocratic
- Aristocratic refers only to high social class or manners, not necessarily moral worth.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: noble or Nobel? noble or nobility?
noble vs Nobel
Nobel is a proper noun, as in the Nobel Prize; noble is the common adjective or noun for rank or moral worth.
noble vs nobility
Nobility can mean the class of nobles or the quality of being noble; noble is the adjective describing a person or act.
Practice
Choose the best sentence using noble in its main moral sense.
Choose one answer.
The moral sense praises unselfish character: staying late to help is a noble act. Option 1 and option 4 use the social-rank sense, and option 2 treats noble as if it simply means convenient or kind to avoid hurt, which is not the best use here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “noble”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.