Word of the Day: October 14, 2026
Deportment
noundih-PORT-munt
What It Means
- Deportment refers to the way in which one conducts oneself especially in a formal setting.
- // The new students were instructed in proper dress and deportment.
- See the entry
DEPORTMENT in Context
“The scholarship goes to a junior nursing student who has demonstrated ‘academic achievement and abilities, promise as a future nurse, personal deportment and other outstanding characteristics,’ the college said in a news release.” — The Citizen (Auburn, New York), 24 June 2026
Vocab Builder:Deportment
1 of 3
Which word is closest in meaning to deportment?
A.
Bearing
B.
Opinion
C.
Attitude
Did You Know?
Deportment, like a number of English words, has its roots in Latin portare, meaning “to carry.” Other portare descendants include such familiar terms as import (“to bring from an external source”), transport (“to bring from one place to another”), and portfolio, which by its oldest meaning refers to a case for carrying papers. In the case of deportment, the thing we “carry” is ourselves. Deportment can refer simply to one’s demeanor, or it can refer to behavior formed by social conditioning and often conforming to conventional rules of propriety. A 17-year-old Emily Dickinson applied the latter meaning when she wrote to her brother, Austin: “Are you not gratified that I am so rapidly gaining correct ideas of female propriety and sedate deportment?”
