Reputation

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˌɹɛpjʊˈteɪʃən/

Definitions

1. The overall quality of character or behavior by which someone or something is generally known or judged by others
2. The general belief or opinion that people form about someone or something based on past actions and characteristics
3. The widespread view or estimation of a person's or entity's qualities and character as formed by others

Etymology: The sense "public opinion of someone" is the one most people use today, but the word began as something quite different: a matter of counting and calculating. Its Latin ancestor, "reputatio," meant "consideration" or "thinking over," built from "reputare," to reckon or count again, with the prefix "re-" meaning "again" added to "putare," to consider or reckon. English first used the word in the sense of credit or good standing, a meaning that still lingers in phrases about a person's standing in the eyes of others. Long before that, Old English had its own word for fame and renown, "hlīsa," which the Latin-derived term eventually pushed aside. The word arrived through French, passing through Anglo-Norman and Middle French forms before settling into English. Analysing it on the surface, English speakers can see "repute" with the ending "-ation" attached, though the underlying Latin verb is the true source.

Synonyms: standing, status, repute, character, image

Antonyms: disgrace, shame, ignominy, infamy, stigma