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.

Primary Meanings of attitude

1.
 n
a complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and values and dispositions to act in certain ways
2.
 n
the arrangement of the body and its limbs
3.
 n
position of aircraft or spacecraft relative to a frame of reference (the horizon or direction of motion)
Full Definitions of attitude
1

n 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
Types:
show 58 types...
hide 58 types...
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
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

n the arrangement of the body and its limbs

“he assumed an attitude of surrender”
Synonyms:
position, posture
Types:
show 20 types...
hide 20 types...
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
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

n a theatrical pose created for effect

“the actor struck just the right attitude”
Type of:
affectation, affectedness, mannerism, pose
a deliberate pretense or exaggerated display
3

n position of aircraft or spacecraft relative to a frame of reference (the horizon or direction of motion)

Types:
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

Sign up, it's free!

Whether you're a student, an educator, or a lifelong learner, Vocabulary.com can put you on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.