Etymology From French attitude, from Italian attitudine (“attitude, aptness”), from Medieval Latin aptitūdō (“aptitude”) and actitūdō (“acting, posture”), from Latin aptō and actitō. Doublet of aptitude.
1
The position of the body or way of carrying oneself.
The ballet dancer walked with a graceful attitude.
The lamp stood on the table, and Carrara leant by the huge tome spread out before him; and opposite sat Beatrice, bending over her broidery—the small head, with its rich knot of gathered hair, so exquisitely placed—the slender figure, so graceful in its attitude.1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XII, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume II, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 145:
The guard was paying no attention whatever to the running of his train, in total disregard of rules, and, as the recently-published report of a Ministry of Transport Inspecting Officer of Railways shows, there were other disquieting features in the case, such as ignorance on the part of responsible men of rules and appendix instructions and a lax attitude to regulations of which they professed to be aware, combined with failure to look at staff notice boards.1956 September, “Notes and News: The Barby Sidings Accident Report”, in Railway Magazine, page 638:
It's up to your attitude / To show the real you / 'Cause it's in your eyes, love / Here where the truth resides, oh-woah-ho1977, Bar-Kays, “Attitudes”, in Flying High on Your Love:
I asked the waiter for a clean fork and all I got was attitude.
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And if a nigga get a attitude / Pop it like it's hot2004, “Drop It Like It's Hot”, performed by Snoop Dogg ft. Pharrell Williams:
I thought you were fine, so fine / But your shitty fuckin' attitude / Has got me changing my mind, yeah2011, Mayer Hawthorne, “The Walk”, in How Do You Do:
The airliner had to land with a nose-up attitude after the incident.
The stern planes are located well aft of the center of gravity of the submarine and their primary purpose is attitude (trim) control1982, Thomas Charles Gillmer, Bruce Johnson, Introduction to naval architecture, page 286:
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Scratches should be closely analyzed to determine the attitudes of the boats at the time of initial contact.1997, Paul J. Ciolino, Grace Elting Castle, Advanced Forensic Civil Investigations, page 109:
The main aim of the development of the smart antenna model is to stabilize attitude of the antenna which is mounted on a platform or host structure.1999, Smart Materials Structures of Systems, →ISBN, page 307:
5
A position similar to an arabesque, but with the raised leg bent at the knee.
Blasis was a man of many accomplishments. He invented the ballet position of attitude and codified the ballet technique of that time, distinguishing three types of dancers: the serious, the demi-caractère, and the comic dancer.2007, Gayle Kassing, History of Dance: An Interactive Arts Approach, page 134:
Etymology From French attitude, from Italian attitudine (“attitude, aptness”), from Medieval Latin aptitūdō (“aptitude”) and actitūdō (“acting, posture”), from Latin aptō and actitō. Doublet of aptitude.
1
To assume or to place in a particular position or orientation; to pose.
[…] nymphs of quality, formed for the offices of love and of conversation, are attituded about her, each star set as it were in surrounding satellites of admirers;[…]1823, Felix M'Donogh, The Hermit Abroad, volume 1, page 122:
Attituded like an inspired curling-tongs, leaning back heavily on his right leg, and throwing forward his left, his arm elevated to a level with his shoulder, the clenched fist grasping a brush that might have been available in […]1837, William E. Burton, The Gentleman's Magazine, volume 1, page 123:
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The attituded control gyro package, electronics, APS gas supply, and the preentry electronics are mounted internally, and are distributed circumferentially at the major ring.1971, Advances in Astronautical Sciences, American Astronautical Society, Volume 29, Part 2, page 395:
2
To express an attitude through one's posture, bearing, tone of voice, etc.
He attituded his way over to me, got up close, and just stood there looking at me, trying to appear threatening.2002, Wayne Normis, The Last Street Fighter, page 33:
The typical characteristic attituded toward the English is coldness.2008, Yvonne Müller, "The Absentee": an Interpretation - an Analysis of Maria Edgeworth's Novel, page 12:
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I was really tripping, 'cause this nigga had the nerve to be attituded up when he was the one always doing something he had no business doing.2010, R. Scott, Nine Months and a Year Later, page 82: