utilitarianism Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun doctrine that the useful is the good; especially as elaborated by Jeremy Bentham and James Mill; the aim was said to be the greatest happiness for the greatest number

WordNet

U*til`i*ta"ri*an*ism noun
Definitions
  1. The doctrine that the greatest happiness of the greatest number should be the end and aim of all social and political institutions. Bentham.
  2. The doctrine that virtue is founded in utility, or that virtue is defined and enforced by its tendency to promote the highest happiness of the universe. J. S. Mill.
  3. The doctrine that utility is the sole standard of morality, so that the rectitude of an action is determined by its usefulness.

Webster 1913