Vertu

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /vəˈtuː/

Definitions

1. It signifies the intrinsic qualities that reflect one's character and guide moral actions in society
2. It denotes the fundamental qualities that shape a person's character and dictate their moral conduct within a community
3. A term that represents the essential moral qualities that inform an individual's character and influence ethical behavior within a social framework

Etymology: The most striking twist is that "vertu" once meant something quite different from moral goodness. In Italian, "virtù" in the 16th century came to mean the appreciation of the fine arts, the expertise that let a connoisseur judge a painting or sculpture, and by extension the precious objects themselves. English borrowed the word in that artistic sense, so a collector's "vertu" was his treasured art and curios rather than his virtue. The word also carried earlier meanings that its Latin ancestor shared. Italian "virtù" had meant moral worth as far back as the 13th century, then broadened in the 14th to determination, perseverance and military valour. English took the word from either Italian or French, which had both inherited it from Latin "virtus", meaning manliness, courage or excellence. Because English already had "virtue" from the same Latin source, the two words became doublets. "Vertu" kept the artistic and collecting sense that "virtue" never acquired, which is why the spelling and meaning now feel so separate.