Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - moral

 I. adjective  Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin ~is, from mor-, mos custom  Date: 14th century  1.  a. of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behavior ; ethical ~ judgments  b. expressing or teaching a conception of right behavior a ~ poem  c. conforming to a standard of right behavior  d. sanctioned by or operative on one's conscience or ethical judgment a ~ obligation  e. capable of right and wrong action a ~ agent  2. probable though not proved ; virtual a ~ certainty  3. perceptual or psychological rather than tangible or practical in nature or effect a ~ victory ~ support  • ~ly adverb Synonyms:  ~, ethical, virtuous, righteous, noble mean conforming to a standard of what is right and good. ~ implies conformity to established sanctioned codes or accepted notions of right and wrong the basic ~ values of a community. ethical may suggest the involvement of more difficult or subtle questions of rightness, fairness, or equity committed to the highest ethical principles. virtuous implies ~ excellence in character not a religious person, but virtuous nevertheless. righteous stresses guiltlessness or blamelessness and often suggests the sanctimonious wished to be righteous before God and the world. noble implies ~ eminence and freedom from anything petty, mean, or dubious in conduct and character had the noblest of reasons for seeking office.  II. noun  Date: 15th century  1.  a. the ~ significance or practical lesson (as of a story)  b. a passage pointing out usually in conclusion the lesson to be drawn from a story  2. plural  a. ~ practices or teachings ; modes of conduct  b. ethics  3. ~e