In its modern, English use, the Latin word gravitas usually denotes a general kind of seriousness, often derived from an individual's seniority. This is somewhat reflective of the original, Latin use of the word, where, for example, a senator's gravitas might be praised in the Roman senate. Gravitas meant the man's ability to remove himself from the common will of the mob, to show a piety for the gods and the state that elevated his actions and words above mere self self-interest, and his willingness to use his experience and wisdom for the good of the Republic to come to a seasoned judgment about a pressing issue. Thus, in Rome, the denoted meaning of gravitas had an additional patriotic component, given how closely it was woven into the fabric of what was said to constitute good and wise governance of the state. .

             One 1877 classicist summed gravitas and the morals of the Republic like so: "The people entrusted their powers to the Senate, satisfied that it acted for the best; and during this period eloquence was matured. That special quality, so well named by the Romans gravitas, which at [democratically governed] Athens was never reached, but which has again appeared in England, owed its development to the august discipline of the Senate." (Cruttwell, 1877) Later on, the notions of gravitas held so dear by such Republican orators as Cicero were transferred onto the Roman Empire's system of values. Even the use of the term "august" in the 1877 quotation reflects the fact that Augustus Caesar was said to embody, like his uncle Julius, the virtues of Roman detachment from the will of the mob and a desire to do what was best, with sober consideration, for the honor of the nation. .

             However, not all Romans embraced gravitas with equal fervor. For example, Augustus Caesar and his former ally in the triumvirate and later his rival, Mark Antony can be seen as representing two very different systems of morality in Roman life, both of which had their advocates.