verity

noun

ver·​i·​ty ˈver-ə-tē 

plural verities

1

: the quality or state of being true or real

2

: something (such as a statement) that is true

especially : a fundamental and inevitably true value

such eternal verities as honor, love, and patriotism

3

: the quality or state of being truthful or honest

the king-becoming graces, as justice, verity

—William Shakespeare

Synonyms

• facticity
• factuality
• sooth
• trueness
• truth

Examples of verity in a Sentence

the local tourist bureau is less concerned with the verity of the legend than the fact that it attracts visitors to the area

no one is questioning your verity—just your memory of events that happened long ago

Recent Examples on the Web

In September 2023, 'The New Yorker' published a story calling into question the verity behind the personal stories in Hasan Minhaj's stand-up sets Comments Hasan Minhaj has had a successful career as a comedian, with three Netflix specials under his belt. —Rebecca Aizin, People.com, 23 Oct. 2024

Helix Earth Technologies has been awarded multiple grants and funding from a verity of sources, including the DOE and NASA, and was recently announced as a finalist in the 2024 Urban Future Prize Competition. —New Atlas, 14 Aug. 2024

Putin conducts himself as a human quotation from the past, a restorer of Russia's age-old verities. —Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024

The question for Israelis is what will fill the void left by the loss of the old verities. —Daniel Benjamin, The Atlantic, 7 Dec. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Middle English verite, borrowed from Anglo-French verité, borrowed from Latin vēritāt-, vēritās, from vērus "true" + -itāt-, -itās -ity — more at very entry 2

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

verity

noun

ver·​i·​ty ˈver-ət-ē 

plural verities

1

: the quality or state of being true or real

2

: something (as a statement) that is true : fact

3

: the quality or state of being truthful or honest : veracity