Definition of "formality" []

• The quality or condition of being formal. (noun)
• Rigorous or ceremonious adherence to established forms, rules, or customs. (noun)
• An established form, rule, or custom, especially one followed merely for the sake of procedure or decorum. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "This isn't so much about hospitality, as about keeping a certain formality and mystique in the home for our own families, so that it is a place of respect and sentiment, rather than some dropping off place like anywhere else."
• "In the end, I was shown that it was not nice at all, to let boorish people break down the formality of the home, because formality is more than just using a fork."
• "Cloaking himself in formality he bowed slightly before addressing Kara in an aside."