mores
mores Lexical Profile
mores Game Scores & Validity
• noun
The essential or characteristic customs, conventions, and moral norms of a particular community, society, or social group.
"The novel explores how rapidly shifting social mores challenged traditional family structures in the mid-twentieth century."
Word Nuance & Usage
Pronounced as two syllables ('MOR-ayz' or 'MOR-eez'), 'mores' is a plural noun borrowed directly from Latin and should not be confused with the plural of the English determiner 'more'. In sociology, 'mores' specifically denote binding moral norms whose violation invites severe social sanction, contrasting with 'folkways', which are casual everyday etiquette.
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed directly from Latin 'mōrēs', the plural of 'mōs' (meaning custom, habit, or manner), which is also the root of the English word 'moral'. It was introduced into modern sociological terminology by the American scholar William Graham Sumner in his 1906 work 'Folkways'.