Ethical judgement and competing obligations

C2 · 100 entries · Five themes

Ethical judgement and competing obligations

Created by , British English teacher.

Open a theme, then select a word or phrase for its meaning, example and pronunciation.

1. Principles and obligations (20 entries)
  1. a competing duty
  2. a moral quandary
  3. a categorical imperative
  4. an act of omission
  5. a moral imperative
  6. a consequentialist argument
  7. integrity
  8. a conflict of conscience
  9. a conscientious objection
  10. moral culpability
  11. a deontological objection
  12. an overriding obligation
  13. an ethical blind spot
  14. informed assent
  15. be a law unto oneself
  16. collective culpability
  17. wilful ignorance
  18. a duty of candour
  19. an act of commission
  20. on pain of
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2. Degrees of responsibility (20 entries)
  1. apportion responsibility
  2. take responsibility by association
  3. call someone to account for
  4. mistake accountability for blame
  5. attribute fault to
  6. be complicit in an omission
  7. lay the blame at someone's door
  8. wash one's hands of a decision
  9. an admission against interest
  10. absolve someone of blame
  11. shoulder the burden of responsibility
  12. answer for one's actions
  13. accept one's share of the blame
  14. disclaim responsibility
  15. a tacit admission of fault
  16. hold someone personally liable
  17. hide behind procedure
  18. give credit where it is due
  19. exonerate someone of wrongdoing
  20. shift the onus onto
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3. Freedom and constraint (20 entries)
  1. an abuse of discretion
  2. mitigating circumstances
  3. an aggravating factor
  4. without let or hindrance
  5. contingent liability
  6. qualified undertaking
  7. reservation of rights
  8. withdraw consent freely
  9. in breach of contract
  10. meaningful consent
  11. encumbrance
  12. cannibalisation
  13. diminished responsibility
  14. optionality
  15. principal-agent problem
  16. agency cost
  17. contractual privity
  18. load the dice against someone
  19. unencumbered
  20. self-reliance
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4. Mixed motives (20 entries)
  1. act under the guise of
  2. give a veneer of respectability to
  3. mistake expediency for principle
  4. have an ulterior motive
  5. make a virtue of necessity
  6. be wise after the event
  7. have a vested interest in
  8. under the pretext of
  9. cross that bridge when one comes to it
  10. have one's hands tied
  11. pay lip service to an ideal
  12. protest one's innocence
  13. have one's cake and eat it
  14. be torn in two directions
  15. the buck stops with someone
  16. choose the lesser of two evils
  17. be damned if you do and damned if you don't
  18. be caught on the horns of a dilemma
  19. kill the goose that lays the golden eggs
  20. have a finger in every pie
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5. Fairness and ethical choices (20 entries)
  1. pick up the pieces
  2. let someone off the hook
  3. give someone a free pass
  4. face the music
  5. make an example of someone
  6. take the law into one's own hands
  7. play fast and loose with the rules
  8. clean up someone else's mess
  9. have a lot to answer for
  10. get off lightly
  11. pick up the tab
  12. walk away scot-free
  13. distributive justice
  14. make the punishment fit the crime
  15. be left to carry the burden
  16. carry the can
  17. take the rap
  18. be left holding the baby
  19. do someone an injustice
  20. procedural justice
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