Synonym Chooser

How is the word chaste distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of chaste are decent, modest, and pure. While all these words mean "free from all taint of what is lewd or salacious," chaste primarily implies a refraining from acts or even thoughts or desires that are not virginal or not sanctioned by marriage vows.

they maintained chaste relations

How are the words modest and decent related as synonyms of chaste?

Both modest and decent apply especially to deportment and dress as outward signs of inward chastity or purity.

preferred more modest swimsuits
decent people didn't go to such movies

How do pure and chaste relate to one another?

Pure differs from chaste in implying innocence and absence of temptation rather than control of one's impulses and actions.

the pure of heart

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of chaste Our Lady was chaste, willingly, willfully passive, untainted by the grottiness of ordinary life. Lamorna Ash, The Dial, 6 May 2025 Some medieval and Renaissance artists, for example, portrayed Mary breast-feeding the infant Jesus at a chaste distance, such that the milk spurts of its own accord into his mouth. S. C. Cornell, The New Yorker, 12 Mar. 2025 Hellbent on destroying the pure, chaste and overly self-righteous preacher who denied her satisfaction, Salome performs a seductive dance at her stepfather Herod’s birthday feast. E.r. Zarevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Mar. 2025 Ford is his usual tough-guy cop, but there’s a sensitivity, a wounded heart, to his character that comes out most powerfully in his chaste love affair with an Amish woman played by Kelly McGillis. Tim Grierson, Vulture, 18 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for chaste
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chaste
Adjective
  • The shot was clean with a bold recovery, just like a pure Mickelson moment.
    Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Aug. 2025
  • Adeleye was outclassed from a pure boxing standpoint, but his heart was on display.
    Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • He’s flown down to Trump’s pleasure palace, where Trump emerges in a pristine white suit like Ricardo Montalban from Fantasy Island — while his VP J.D. Vance is reduced to playing the pint-sized Tattoo.
    Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 6 Aug. 2025
  • Keep reading for the 18 best things to do in Stuart, Florida. Martin County is home to 22 miles of pristine beaches, and Stuart’s most popular is Stuart Beach.
    Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • The difficulty of completing an immaculate inning — striking out all three batters in a frame on the minimum nine pitches — is highlighted by how few pitchers have pulled off the feat.
    Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2025
  • Book a tee time at one of four immaculate championship courses in Calabash: Brunswick Golf Club, Crow Creek, Meadowlands Golf Club, and The Pearl Golf Links.
    Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • At the end of the dredging, sediment that’s not placed on the beach could be left in the pit and covered with a layer of clean sand.
    San Diego Union-Tribune, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Feb. 2023
  • Think about it: the record companies forced them to be clean cut and preppy and all those things.
    Gary Gerard Hamilton, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Feb. 2023
Adjective
  • Disney’s initial press information on the Elio 4K Blu-ray suggests that the film is going to appear on a high-capacity 100GB disc, despite its modest 98-minute run time.
    John Archer, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
  • The related people would be vetted, and the employer would pay a modest daily tariff (e.g., $25) for the right to employ them.
    Boston Herald, Boston Herald, 13 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • Ghibli managed to do it in a way that was relatively independent and unsullied of that business.
    Ryan Gaur, IndieWire, 10 June 2025
  • The crux of the change for Tarantino is that the experience of theater is still unsullied, whereas with movies, people are on their phones and the theatrical window is teeny tiny.
    Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 28 Jan. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Chaste.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chaste. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on chaste

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