conformity
part of speech
noun (conformity; uncountable)
meaning for a pupil
1) Behaving the same way as most other people or as the rules expect, instead of being different: «pressure towards conformity». tree →
2) Being in agreement with a rule, law or standard: «in conformity with the safety rules». tree →
sense in the lessons
In PSHE, ethics and citizenship lessons, conformity is linked to peer pressure: wearing what everyone wears, saying what everyone says; we learn to think for ourselves while still keeping good rules. In science and technology, products must be «in conformity with» safety standards (the CE or UKCA mark). In history, some groups were forced into religious conformity. Phrases: «in conformity with», «pressure to conform», «social conformity».
examples
- School uniforms are partly about conformity. tree →
- Some teenagers dye their hair to rebel against conformity. tree →
- The toy was tested for conformity with safety rules. tree →
- Conformity is not always bad: we all drive on the same side of the road. tree →
- The story is about a girl who refuses to give in to conformity. tree →
- Scientists ran a famous experiment showing how strong the pressure to conformity can be. tree →
note
Uncountable. The verb is «conform» (to follow the rules or do what others do) and a person who always conforms is a «conformist»; one who does not is a «nonconformist». In UK history, «Nonconformist» with a capital N means Protestant Christians outside the Church of England, such as Methodists and Baptists.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «conformity» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.