English → Latin
“quality” in Latin
quālitāsquality, propertynātūrathe nature, quality, substance or essence of a thing; character, temperament, inclination, disposition; nature, the naturatiōreason, reasoning, explanation, ground, motive, rationality, rationale, purpose; calculation, account, accounting, reckoindolēsinnate or inborn quality; nature; natural ability; talentingeniuminnate or natural quality, natural character; nature; disposition, temper, inclination; intelligence, natural capacitycōnstitūtiōa constitution, disposition, nature, character; a definition; point in dispute; a regulation, order, arrangement, systemproprietāsquality, property, peculiarity, character; the legal position of an owner particularly if his property is encumbered witnōtusfamiliar, customary, in common use; widely known, famous, well-known; of great renown, illustrious, celebrated, notoriou
The English word quality itself goes back to Latin quālis, through quālitās.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
quality
Nature, kind, qualitas (ποιότης, only as philosophical technical term): natura; ratio (Cic.); indoles: ingenium (natural, peculiar, essential quality): constitutio (quality as derived from its formation). Peculiar quality, proprietas; (of wine) nota (Cic., Hor., Col.); e.g., vini nota optima, acetum primae notae, diversae notae esse (Col.).
High rank, claritas generis (Quint.); claritudo familiae (Tac.): persons of quality, homines illustri loco nati: he is a man of quality, est vir nobiliore, illustriore loco natus; genere et dignitate conspicuus.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for quality?
- The usual Latin words for “quality” are quālitās, nātūra, ratiō; also indolēs, ingenium, cōnstitūtiō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.