A GOOD CONFESSION:
The term "daughters" or secondary vices of the capital sins was popularized by Saint Gregory the Great, but it was adopted and systematized by Saint Thomas Aquinas in his main work, the Summa Theologiae (II-II, q. 153-154, among others).
Below is a list associating each capital sin with its derived vices, or "daughters," as described in the moral theology of Saint Thomas:
Daughters of the Seven Capital Sins (Secondary Vices)
Capital Sin (Principal Vice)Secondary Vices or "Daughters"Explanation
Pride (Superbia - Queen and origin of all sins)
1. Boastfulness (Vainglory)To brag about what one is not or what one does not have, seeking the approval of others.
2. Contempt (Contemptus)To look down on others as inferior and refuse to recognize their merits.
3. Hypocrisy (Hypocrisis)To feign virtues one does not possess in order to be praised.
4. Obstinacy (Pertinacia)To blindly adhere to an opinion, refusing to acknowledge the truth.
5. Discord (Discordia)To break unity with others by refusing to yield or submit.
6. Dissension (Dissensio)To oppose the commands or advice of superiors or reason.
Avarice (Avaritia)
1. Treachery (Proditiones)To break fidelity or trust for economic interest.
2. Fraud (Fraudis)To deceive in order to obtain an unjust gain.
3. Lying (Mendacii)Falsehood to cover up avarice or achieve a lucrative end.
4. Perjury (Perjurium)To swear falsely to secure a gain.
5. Violence (Violentiae)To violently take what belongs to another to appropriate it.
6. Hardness of heart (Duritia cordis)Insensitivity to the needs of others to avoid sharing.
Lust (Luxuria)
1. Blindness of the mind (Caecitas mentis)Passion darkens understanding and judgment.
2. Precipitation (Praecipitatio)To act without due reflection or caution.
3. Inconstancy (Inconstantia)Easily changing purposes and abandoning good things.
4. Disordered self-love (Amor sui)To place one’s own pleasure as the supreme end.
5. Hatred of God (Odium Dei)To feel aversion to God’s law for forbidding disordered pleasure.
6. Attachment to earthly life (Amor mundi)Excessive preference for material and sensual things.
Wrath (Ira)
1. Clamor (Clamor)Shouts and violent words.
2. Tumult/Quarrel (Contumeliae)To insult or affront one’s neighbor.
3. Injury (Rixa)Fight or brawl with aggression.
4. Indignation (Indignatio)Anger that accumulates in the heart.
5. Swelling of the soul (Mentis tumor)Arrogance arising from resentment.
6. Blasphemy (Blasphemia)Injurious words against God (considered an extreme of wrath).
Gluttony (Gula)
1. Stupidity (Stultitia)Clumsiness in understanding spiritual matters.
2. Buffoonery (Scurrilitas)Seeking pleasure in vulgar or buffoonish jokes.
3. Impurity (Immunditia)Desire for disordered sensual pleasure (related to lust).
4. Immoderate joy (Laetitia immoderata)Excessive happiness from physical pleasure.
5. Excessive talkativeness (Multiloquium)Talking too much without sense or excessively.
Envy (Invidia)
1. Murmuring (Detractio)Speaking ill of one’s neighbor in secret to damage their reputation.
2. Slander (Maledictio)Wishing or openly speaking evil of one’s neighbor.
3. Joy at the adversity of others (Gaudium de adversis)Taking pleasure in others’ misfortunes.
4. Sadness at the prosperity of others (Tristitia de prosperis)Being distressed by others’ successes or goods.
5. Hatred (Odium)To abhor the envied person.
Sloth (Acedia - Sadness of spiritual good)
1. Malice (Malitia)Desire to harm one’s neighbor.
2. Resentment (Rancor)Bitterness of spirit that seeks excuses for sin.
3. Desperation (Desperatio) Loss of hope in achieving salvation.
4. Sluggishness of the spirit (Torpor mentis) Laziness in attending to spiritual good.
5. Wandering of the mind (Vagatio mentis) The mind disperses seeking to compensate for the void of spiritual good.
6. Hatred of God (Odium Dei) Aversion to divine things because they require an effort that laziness rejects.