Mores
noun /ˈmɔːreɪz/ — The unspoken standards of a community felt as moral absolutes.
Definition
The essential or characteristic customs and conventions of a community — the moral standards and values that members of a group consider binding on all members and take for granted as natural rather than conventional.
Beyond the definition
Mores are the rules everyone knows but no one stated. They are enforced not by law but by social pressure — by the raised eyebrow, the withheld invitation, the careful silence. They vary between communities and change across time, but inside any community they feel like nature rather than choice.
Origin & history
From Latin mores (customs, habits, character, morals), plural of mos (custom, manner, way). The Latin root of moral — the customs of a society that became its morality.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
The mores of the community made divorce unthinkable even when marriages were miserable.
She had grown up in a culture with very different mores and found the adjustment difficult.
The mores of professional journalism — accuracy, fairness, independence — were supposed to apply regardless of employer.
Synonyms
customs, conventions, social norms, values
Antonyms
iconoclasm, deviation, transgression
Related words
Word in the Wild
See how this word appears in life, language and stories.
Illustrative sentences and imagined stories for learning — not verified sightings, interviews, or sourced quotations.
Fictional scene
Hierarchical Staircase of People
A visual representation shows a stone staircase with people at different levels wearing distinct, hierarchical styles of clothing.
The staircase and clothing styles visualize the mores of a community—the established customs and standards that dictate social position. It shows how people take their assigned layers for granted as natural rather than conventional parts of their stratified social structure.
Image credit: Wordspun · AI-generated conceptual illustration