Ethics is both the philosophical study of right and wrong and the set of principles that govern a specific profession or group, while morality is the more general distinction between right and wrong that guides personal behaviour. A doctor follows a code of medical ethics, but acts according to their own morality.
The core difference
Ethics tends to describe formal, often professional or philosophical, codes of conduct; morality describes the broader, more personal sense of right and wrong.
- ethics — the branch of philosophy dealing with right and wrong, or the principles governing a group's behaviour: Doctors must follow a strict code of medical ethics.
- morality — the distinction between right and wrong, and the principles that guide good behaviour: The debate raised deep questions about morality.
How to tell them apart
Ethics often attaches to a role or institution, such as "business ethics" or "medical ethics," describing an agreed code that a group is expected to follow. Morality is usually more personal and general, referring to an individual's or a culture's sense of right and wrong, as in "Victorian morality."
Ethics comes from the Ancient Greek êthos, meaning "character" or "moral nature," reaching English via Late Latin. Morality comes from Old French moralité and ultimately Latin mōrālis, "relating to manners or morals." The shared ground between the two words is one reason they are so often used as near-synonyms.
