Might makes right is an aphorism describing a morality which dictates that it's those who are the strongest will rule others and have the power to determine right and wrong. The term is used mostly in a descriptive sense, in the same sense that people say that "History is written by the victors." In other words, it's not necessarily true that might "makes" or determines right, but it is true that a society's view of right and wrong is determined, like its perspective on history, by those currently in power. However, the philosophy also manifests itself in a proscriptive sense as a basis for defining a moral code for society to follow, in the works of people like Nietzsche and in notions like social darwinism.

"Might makes right" is sometimes expressed as "Mighty is Righty"