self-righteousness

A person displays self-righteousness by lecturing a friend.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • The quality of being self-righteous: "self-righteousness" refers to an attitude of moral superiority, where a person believes their own beliefs, actions, or standards are absolutely correct and better than those of others, often accompanied by a lack of humility or tolerance for differing views.

Usage Examples

• (His attitude of moral superiority created conflict.)
• (She expressed judgment while believing herself to be morally correct.)
• (His belief in his own moral correctness damaged his public appeal.)

Advanced Usage

• "to wear self-righteousness as a badge": to openly display an attitude of moral superiority as a point of pride.

  • He wore his self-righteousness as a badge, lecturing everyone on proper behaviour. (He proudly showed his belief in his own correctness.)

• "a cloak of self-righteousness": to hide one's own faults behind a show of moral superiority.

  • She hid her own mistakes behind a cloak of self-righteousness. (She used pretended moral superiority to avoid criticism.)

Variants and Related Words

• Self-righteous (adj): having or showing an attitude of moral superiority.

  • His self-righteous tone annoyed the entire group. (His tone showed he thought he was morally better than others.)

• Righteousness (n): the quality of being morally right or justifiable.

  • She was admired for her righteousness, not her self-righteousness. (She was admired for genuine morality, not for a superior attitude.)

Synonyms

• Sanctimony: an outward show of being morally superior, often hypocritically.
• Holier-than-thou attitude: a phrase meaning behaving as if one is morally better than others.
• Moral superiority: the belief that one’s own moral standards are better than others’.

Related Idioms

• To sit in judgment: to judge others harshly, often with self-righteousness.

  • He sat in judgment of everyone, never seeing his own faults. (He judged others with moral superiority.)

• To cast the first stone: to be the first to criticize someone, especially when one is not perfect oneself.

  • She cast the first stone at her colleague, ignoring her own mistakes. (She criticized first, showing self-righteousness.)