turpitude

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 8, 2017 is: turpitude \TER-puh-tood\ noun : inherent baseness : depravity; also : a base act Examples: Many consumers have raised objections to the company's latest ad campaign, in which various forms of moral turpitude are depicted as fashion statements. "As a lawyer, a conviction for this type of conduct is likely to be considered a crime of 'moral turpitude' because it involves a significant breach of the duty of a lawyer to maintain the confidentiality of a client's information." — Peter J. Henning, The New York Times, 14 Feb. 2017 Did you know? Turpitude came to English from Latin by way of Middle French. The Latin word turpitudo comes from turpis, which means "vile" or "base." The word is often found in the phrase "moral turpitude," an expression used in law to designate an act or behavior that gravely violates the moral sentiment or accepted moral standards of the community. A criminal offense that involves moral turpitude is one that is considered wrong or evil by moral standards, in addition to being the violation of a statute. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.