道徳|どうとくdoutoku[0]heiban (flat)
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- nounmorals; morality
- Synonym倫理りんりNeutralEthics: the norms people should follow, leaning academic or professional, as in 「医療倫理」; more theoretical than 「道徳」.
- Synonym道義どうぎWrittenWritten word for the right path people should follow; leans toward duty and justice, often in 「道義的責任」.
- Synonym徳義とくぎWrittenWritten word for the moral duties one should observe; rare in modern usage.
- SynonymモラルNeutralLoanword for moral values or public-mindedness, as in 「モラルが低い」; common in everyday speech.
- SynonymモラリティーWrittenLoanword for morality as a quality; found in academic writing or translations, rarely in daily use—say 「モラル」 or 「道徳」 instead.
- Related徳行とっこうWrittenWritten word for conduct that accords with morality; rare today.
- Related義ぎNeutralRighteousness or moral duty, as in 「義を重んじる」; one of the Confucian virtues.
- Related善ぜんNeutralGood or goodness, the abstract value contrasted with 「悪」.
- Related美徳びとくNeutralA concrete good quality, as in 「謙虚は美徳だ」; a specific virtue rather than morality as a whole.
- Related人倫じんりんWrittenWritten word for the ordered relations between people; mostly in ethics scholarship.
- Related功徳くどくNeutralBuddhist term for virtuous deeds and the blessings they bring, as in 「功徳を積む」.
- Related善徳ぜんとくWrittenWritten word for a good, virtuous character; rare in modern usage.
- Related篤行とっこうWrittenWritten word for sincere, earnest good deeds; rare today.
- Related明徳めいとくWrittenWritten word for bright, shining virtue; also a historical era name; mostly in classical texts.
- Related道心どうしんWrittenWritten word for conscience or the heart set on Buddhist practice; rare today.
- Related聖徳せいとくWrittenWritten word for the supreme virtue of an emperor or the Buddha; very rare today, and on a different plane from the social norms 「道徳」 denotes.
- Related徳とくNeutralPersonal virtue or moral character, as in 「徳が高い」; focuses on individual cultivation.
- Related道徳性どうとくせいWrittenAbstract noun for the quality of being moral; mostly in academic discussion.
- Related倫理性りんりせいWrittenThe quality of being ethically sound; used in academic and evaluative contexts.
- Antonym不道徳ふどうとくNeutralAntonym: going against morality; the direct opposite of 「道徳」.
- Antonym背徳はいとくWrittenWritten antonym for falling from virtue, with a decadent nuance, as in 「背徳感」.
Use 「道徳」 for the moral norms a society shares or the school subject. For academic or professional norms say 「倫理」, in everyday speech 「モラル」, for personal virtue 「徳」, for a specific good quality 「美徳」; the opposite is 「不道徳」. The rest are mostly written or specialist words: 「道義」 for duty and justice, 「功徳」 in Buddhist contexts, 「道徳性」「倫理性」 for abstract morality in academic prose, and rare literary terms like 「徳行」「善徳」「篤行」「明徳」「道心」「聖徳」「背徳」.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only


