iniquity
- 01 C2 Proficiency
the quality of being very unfair or morally wrong.
gross injustice or wickedness; the quality of being deeply immoral. Uncountable in this abstract sense.
Simple“The reformer spent his life fighting against the iniquity of the slave trade.”
In context“The philosopher argued that the inherent iniquity of the social system would eventually lead to a total collapse of public trust.”
UsageOften used in the singular to describe a general state of unfairness.
Teacher's tipThis is a high-level, formal word often found in religious or historical texts; students should use 'unfairness' or 'wrongdoing' in everyday speech.
- 02 C2 Proficiency
a specific action that is very unfair or evil.
a specific act of great injustice or a wicked deed. Countable in this sense.
Simple“The survivors told stories of the iniquities committed during the long war.”
In context“The commission was tasked with investigating the various iniquities perpetrated by the regime against its own citizens.”
UsageCommonly used in the plural to list specific instances of wrongdoing.
Teacher's tipNote the plural form 'iniquities' when referring to multiple specific events.
From Middle English iniquite, jniquite (“evil, wickedness, iniquity; evil act; hostility, malevolence; hostile act; a calamity, misfortune”), from Old French iniquité (modern French iniquité (“iniquity”)), from Latin inīquitās (“iniquity; inequality, unfairness; inequity, injustice”), from inīquus (“unequal, uneven, unfair; disadvantageous, unfavourable; hostile, unkind; unsuitable; wicked, wrong”) + -itās (variant of -tās (suffix forming a noun indicating a state of being)). Inīquus is derived from in- (prefix meaning ‘not’) + aequus (“equal; fair, impartial, just”). Piecewise doublet of inequity.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.