Formality Meaning
/fɔːrˈmælɪti/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounThe state of being formal.
nounSomething said or done as a matter of form.
Sentence Examples
In general, young people dislike formality.
It's just a formality.
Please, don't be concerned about it. It's just a formality.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
None
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
After the contract was signed, they completed the ____ of shaking hands.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Signing the contract was just a ____, as the terms had already been agreed upon in person.
Word Origin & History
From Middle French formalité. equivalent to formal + -ity.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"[S]uch an one […] recalls as a vision of Paradise the land he has learnt to love; he exaggerates the insalubrity of a northern climate; he bewails the wretched formality of our civilised life, and so, back to the distant solitudes flies his recollection like a dove to the wilderness."
— 1874, Georg August Schweinfurth, chapter I, in Ellen E. Frewer, transl., The Heart of Africa: Three Years' Travels and Adventures in the Unexplored Regions of Central Africa, from 1868 to 1871, second edition, volume I, London: Sampson Low, Marston, Low, And Searle, translation of Im Herzen von Afrika, Botanical Ardour:
"I expected some sort of formality before they let me see the crown—so valuable—but there was really nothing at all. I just said, "Can I see No. 64, please?" and he simply pulled one of the shallow drawers out of its case and put it down before me on the table."
— 1927, Ernest Bramah, Max Carrados Mysteries:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
After the contract was signed, they completed the ____ of shaking hands.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Signing the contract was just a ____, as the terms had already been agreed upon in person.