Duty Is What Is Owed, in Morals and at Customs
A duty is a moral obligation, and also a tax on imports. Both senses come from the idea of something due.
A duty is a moral or legal obligation, and also a tax levied on goods. Both come from *due*, meaning owed: a moral duty is what you owe by conscience and a customs duty is what you owe by law. The same double sense runs through *obligation* and *charge*. *Duty-free* shops exist because goods leaving a country are not consumed in it, so no import duty is due — the traveller buys outside the tax boundary while standing inside the building.
- A moral obligation. *A sense of duty.*
- An import tax. *Customs duty.*
- A required task. *On duty tonight.*
- Duty-free. *Duty-free shopping.*
- Old French — *deu*, owed. *The root.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | duty | A duty. |
| Plural | duties | Duties. |
| Adjective | dutiful | Dutiful. |
| Compound | duty-free | Duty-free. |
| Related | due | Due. |
- He did his duty without complaint.Obligation.
- Duty is charged on imports.Tax.
- She is on duty until six.Work.
Why duty-free exists
- Import duty is charged on goods consumed within a country
- Goods leaving with a traveller are not consumed there
- So the shop sells outside the tax boundary
- The first duty-free shop opened at Shannon Airport in 1947
- Arrival limits exist because the destination country charges its own duty
Anglo-Norman *duete*, from Old French *deu*, owed, from Latin *debere*, to owe.
Why is a tax called a duty?
Because both senses mean something owed. A moral duty is owed by conscience and a customs duty by law.
Where was the first duty-free shop?
Shannon Airport in Ireland, which opened the first one in 1947 to serve transatlantic passengers.