How do you use the word "etiquette" in a sentence?

Here are real-life examples of using "etiquette": It's a matter of etiquette. It is not etiquette to do so.

Etiquette Meaning

/ˈɛt.ɪˌkɛt/

Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

Definition

nounThe manners or decent behaviour to be observed in social or professional life; conventional decorum; the ceremonial code of polite society.

nounThe customary behavior of members of a profession, business, law, or sports team towards each other.

Sentence Examples

It's a matter of etiquette.

It is not etiquette to do so.

She was dismayed at their ignorance in etiquette.

CEFR Practice Quiz

At the formal dinner, proper ____ required using the correct fork for each course.

CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)

Learning the local ____ is important when traveling to a foreign country to avoid giving offense.

Word Origin & History

1740, from French étiquette (“property, a little piece of paper, or a mark or title, affixed to a bag or bundle, expressing its contents, a label, ticket”), from Middle French estiquette (“ticket, memorandum”), from the Old French verb estechier, estichier, estequier (“to attach, stick”), (compare Picard estiquier (“to stick, pierce”)), from Frankish *stekan, *stikkjan (“to stick, pierce, sting”), from Proto-Germanic *stikaną, *stikōną, *staikijaną (“to be sharp, pierce, prick”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)teyg- (“to be sharp, to stab”). Akin to Old High German stehhan (“to stick, attach, nail”) (German stechen (“to stick”)), Old English stician (“to pierce, stab, be fastened”). The French Court of Louis XIV at Versailles used étiquettes (literally “little cards”) to remind courtiers to keep off of the grass and similar rules. More at stick (verb) and stitch. Doublet of ticket.

Literary Quotations & Historical Citations

"Whenever Root would put his elbows on the table or clatter his dishes or commit any other breach of etiquette, the Professor would gently correct him." — 2003, Yoko Ogawa, The Housekeeper and the Professor:

"Cycling's complex etiquette contains an unwritten rule that riders in contention for a race win should not be penalised for sheer misfortune." — 2012 July 15, Richard Williams, Tour de France 2012: Carpet tacks cannot force Bradley Wiggins off track, Guardian Unlimited:

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