Webster's English Dictionary

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quality

qual.i.ty \'kwa:l-*t-e-\ n [ME qualite, fr. OF qualite`, fr. L qualitat-, 
   qualitasX, fr. qualis of what kind; akin to L qui who - more at WHO 1a: 
   peculiar and essential character : NATURE  1b: an inherent feature : 
   PROPERTY  1c: CAPACITY, ROLE  2a: degree of excellence : GRADE  2b: 
   superiority in kind  3a: social status : RANK  3b: ARISTOCRACY  4a: a 
   distinguishing attribute : CHARACTERISTIC  4b: the character in a logical 
   proposition of being affirmative or negative  archaic  4c: ACCOMPLISHMENT  
   5a: vividness of hue  5b: TIMBRE  5c: the identifying character of a vowel 
   sound determined chiefly by the re sonance of the vocal chambers in 
   uttering it 5d: the attribute of an elementary sensation that makes it 
   fundamentally un like any other sensation general term applicable to any 
   trait or characteristic whether individual or generic ; PROPERTY implies a 
   characteristic that belongs to a thing's essential nature and may be used 
   to describe a type or species; CHARACTER applies to a peculiar and 
   distinctive quality of a thing or a class; ATTRIBUTE implies a quality 
   ascribed to a thing or a being SYN syn PROPERTY, CHARACTER, ATTRIBUTE: 
   QUALITY is a