attitude

An attitude is somewhere between a belief, a stance, a mood, and a pose. If you've got an attitude about something, it can be hard to change it because you think you're right.

You'll often hear Happy Hour referred to as "Attitude Adjustment Hour," because cheap drinks are one of the best ways to change your attitude. If you're in a bad mood, cocktails can make it better (or worse). An attitude is a way of thinking that you can express just by standing a certain way. For example, putting your hands on your hips and rolling your eyes expresses one kind of attitude, while kneeling with your palms together expresses a very different one.

Definitions of attitude
  1. noun
    a complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and values and dispositions to act in certain ways
    “he had the attitude that work was fun”
    synonyms: mental attitude
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    types:
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    acceptance, credence
    the mental attitude that something is believable and should be accepted as true
    culture
    the attitudes and behavior that are characteristic of a particular social group or organization
    defensive, defensive attitude
    an attitude of defensiveness (especially in the phrase `on the defensive')
    hardball
    a no-nonsense attitude in business or politics
    high horse
    an attitude of arrogant superiority
    southernism
    an attitude characteristic of Southerners (especially in the US)
    mentality, mind-set, mindset, outlook
    a habitual or characteristic mental attitude that determines how you will interpret and respond to situations
    paternalism
    the attitude (of a person or a government) that subordinates should be controlled in a fatherly way for their own good
    position, posture, stance
    a rationalized mental attitude
    disposition, inclination, tendency
    an attitude of mind especially one that favors one alternative over others
    tolerance
    willingness to recognize and respect the beliefs or practices of others
    intolerance
    unwillingness to recognize and respect differences in opinions or beliefs
    esteem, regard, respect
    an attitude of admiration or esteem
    disrespect
    a disrespectful mental attitude
    reverence
    a reverent mental attitude
    irreverence
    an irreverent mental attitude
    orientation
    an integrated set of attitudes and beliefs
    fatalism
    a submissive mental attitude resulting from acceptance of the doctrine that everything that happens is predetermined and inevitable
    recognition
    an acceptance (as of a claim) as true and valid
    cyberculture
    the culture that emerges from the use of computers for communication and entertainment and business
    Kalashnikov culture
    the attitudes and behavior in a social group that resolves political disputes by force of arms
    mosaic culture
    a highly diverse culture
    hard line
    a firm and uncompromising stance or position
    direction
    a general course along which something has a tendency to develop
    drift, movement, trend
    a general tendency to change (as of opinion)
    Call
    a special disposition (as if from a divine source) to pursue a particular course
    denominationalism
    the tendency, in Protestantism, to separate into religious denominations or to advocate such separations
    devices
    an inclination or desire; used in the plural in the phrase `left to your own devices'
    sympathy, understanding
    an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion
    favoritism, favouritism
    an inclination to favor some person or group
    leaning, proclivity, propensity
    a natural inclination
    bent, set
    a relatively permanent inclination to react in a particular way
    literalism
    a disposition to interpret statements in their literal sense
    perseveration
    the tendency for a memory or idea to persist or recur without any apparent stimulus for it
    predisposition
    an inclination beforehand to interpret statements in a particular way
    favor, favour
    an inclination to approve
    disapproval, disfavor, disfavour, dislike
    an inclination to withhold approval from some person or group
    partiality, partisanship
    an inclination to favor one group or view or opinion over alternatives
    impartiality, nonpartisanship
    an inclination to weigh both views or opinions equally
    broad-mindedness
    an inclination to tolerate or overlook opposing or shocking opinions or behavior
    liberality, liberalness
    an inclination to favor progress and individual freedom
    disinterest, neutrality
    tolerance attributable to a lack of involvement
    insularity, narrow-mindedness, narrowness
    an inclination to criticize opposing opinions or shocking behavior
    bigotry, dogmatism
    the intolerance and prejudice of a bigot
    fanaticism, fanatism, zealotry
    excessive intolerance of opposing views
    religionism
    exaggerated religious zealotry
    zero tolerance
    extreme intolerance of antisocial behavior (usually by an uncompromising application of the law)
    estimate, estimation
    the respect with which a person is held
    profaneness
    an attitude of irreverence or contempt for a divinity
    wavelength
    a shared orientation leading to mutual understanding
    experimentalism
    an orientation that favors experimentation and innovation
    reorientation
    a fresh orientation; a changed set of attitudes and beliefs
    perspective, position, view
    a way of regarding situations or topics etc.
    point of view, stand, standpoint, viewpoint
    a mental position from which things are viewed
    orthodoxy
    a belief or orientation agreeing with conventional standards
    heresy, heterodoxy, unorthodoxy
    any opinions or doctrines at variance with the official or orthodox position
    ideology, political orientation, political theory
    an orientation that characterizes the thinking of a group or nation
    religious orientation
    an attitude toward religion or religious practices
    type of:
    cognition, knowledge, noesis
    the psychological result of perception and learning and reasoning
  2. noun
    the arrangement of the body and its limbs
    “he assumed an attitude of surrender”
    synonyms: position, posture
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    order arms
    a position in the manual of arms; the rifle is held vertically on the right side with the butt on the ground; often used as a command
    ballet position
    classical position of the body and especially the feet in ballet
    decubitus
    a reclining position (as in a bed)
    eversion
    the position of being turned outward
    lithotomy position
    a position lying on your back with knees bent and thighs apart; assumed for vaginal or rectal examination
    lotus position
    a sitting position with the legs crossed; used in yoga
    missionary position
    a position for sexual intercourse; a man and woman lie facing each other with the man on top; so-called because missionaries thought it the proper position for primitive peoples
    pose
    a posture assumed by models for photographic or artistic purposes
    presentation
    (obstetrics) position of the fetus in the uterus relative to the birth canal
    ectopia
    abnormal position of a part or organ (especially at the time of birth)
    asana
    (Hinduism) a posture or manner of sitting (as in the practice of yoga)
    guard
    a posture of defence in boxing or fencing
    sprawl, sprawling
    an ungainly posture with arms and legs spread about
    stance
    standing posture
    tuck
    (sports) a bodily position adopted in some sports (such as diving or skiing) in which the knees are bent and the thighs are drawn close to the chest
    pose
    a particular way of positioning or arranging one’s body
    pike
    a position, as in gymnastics or diving, in which the legs are straight while the body is bent forward at the waist and the hands touch the feet or hold the calves
    arabesque
    position in which the dancer has one leg raised behind and arms outstretched in a conventional pose
    matsyendra
    (Hinduism) a religious posture
    address
    the stance assumed by a golfer in preparation for hitting a golf ball
    attention
    a motionless erect stance with arms at the sides and feet together; assumed by military personnel during drill or review
    erectness, uprightness
    the property of being upright in posture
    type of:
    bodily property
    an attribute of the body
  3. noun
    a theatrical pose created for effect
    “the actor struck just the right attitude”
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    affectation, affectedness, mannerism, pose
    a deliberate pretense or exaggerated display
  4. noun
    position of aircraft or spacecraft relative to a frame of reference (the horizon or direction of motion)
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    trim
    attitude of an aircraft in flight when allowed to take its own orientation
    type of:
    orientation
    position or alignment relative to points of the compass or other specific directions
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