decorum

noun

de·​co·​rum di-ˈkȯr-əm 

1

: literary and dramatic propriety : fitness

according to strict neoclassic decorum only the aristocracy had the right to appear in tragedy

—Irving Babbitt

2

: propriety and good taste in conduct or appearance

strict in her notions of decorum

—Jane Austen

3

: orderliness

the organization's decorum has rarely been shaken

—W. F. Longgood

4

decorums plural : the conventions of polite behavior

the established sobrieties and decorums of English life

—H. G. Wells

Synonyms

• decency
• form
• propriety

Examples of decorum in a Sentence

He has no sense of decorum.

high standards of decorum are usually required when attending the opera

Recent Examples on the Web

Wittingly or not, nobody embodied this behavior better than Musk, who has spent the past decade operating with a healthy contempt for institutions, any semblance of decorum, and the law. —Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 28 Feb. 2025

Disorder again ensued at the Jan. 28 commissioners court meeting, as the court approved a new decorum policy amid opposition from Democrats on the court and several Tarrant County residents who spoke out on the change. —Cody Copeland, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Feb. 2025

Their votes were standard procedure, for the sake of decorum and longer-term strategy. —Ian Max Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 9 Jan. 2025

Others try to maintain decorum by long-striding into the queue. —Nick Robins-Early, Vulture, 14 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin, from neuter of decorus — see decorous

First Known Use

1568, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for decorum

• picloram
• pullorum
• aurum
• foram
• forum
• quorum
• digitorum
• neonatorum

Kids Definition

decorum

noun

de·​co·​rum di-ˈkōr-əm 

-ˈkȯr-

1

: agreement with accepted standards of conduct : proper behavior

social decorum

2

: the state or condition of being calm, orderly, and well-regulated

the decorum of the meeting