Upstanding meaning in English

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Definition

(an) upstanding (citizen): (an) honest, moral, ideal (citizen) of good character adjective

Examples

"Being a morally upstanding citizen?"

Exercise 1

Donna uses the phrase a morally upstanding citizen in this dialogue.

Which of the following actions are typical of a morally upstanding person?

There may be more than one!

Going out to a night club and partying like it's 1999.

Telling a waitress that she hasn't charged you enough money for your meal.

Finding a suitcase full of money and giving it to the police.

Having the courage to ask a very pretty woman out on a date.

Donna uses the phrase a morally upstanding citizen in this dialogue.

Which of the following actions are typical of a morally upstanding person?

There may be more than one!

Going out to a night club and partying like it's 1999.

This is an incorrect choice. "Partying like it's 1999" is unrelated to morality, but that's just like my opinion, man.

Telling a waitress that she hasn't charged you enough money for your meal.

This is a correct choice. A "morally upstanding citizen" is an honest or moral person, with good values: someone who does what is considered to be morally correct. If a customer realizes that a waitress has "undercharged" them, it would be tempting to say nothing and pay less. However the "correct" thing to do would be to inform her. This would be an example of an action carried out by a morally upstanding citizen! Note that we can also refer simply to an "upstanding" person, with a similar meaning (a person who is honest and "does the right thing").

Finding a suitcase full of money and giving it to the police.

This is a correct choice. A "morally upstanding citizen" is an honest or moral person, with good values: someone who does what is considered to be morally correct. If one found a suitcase full of money, it would be very tempting to keep it, but the "correct" thing to do would be to hand it into the police. This would be an example of an action carried out by a morally upstanding citizen. In the dialogue Donna asks Icarus if his purpose in life is to be a "morally upstanding citizen".

Having the courage to ask a very pretty woman out on a date.

This action is unrelated to the morality of a person. Having the courage to ask someone out on a date is a matter of conviction and nerve, not morals.

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