Honor The definition of honor varied widely between culture s , as did the importance placed upon it . Honor was normally synonymous with dignity and referred to the upholding of one ' s values . The Klingon s were notorious for the emphasis they placed on honor . This may have been a more abstract way of viewing honor . But , as notions of honor were often very subjective , putting emphasis on clear objects ( i . e . , victory ) made the Klingons able to deduce the honorable conduct ( i . e . , means used to achieve victory ) . The had a high belief in their honor , preventing them from breaking their oath of silence and accept a possibility such as political asylum . ( ) Klingon honor . Honor was one of the most important components of Klingon philosophy , as their social order depended on an inviolable honor - shame dynamic . However , it was significantly different from most other cultures ' definition of the word . For example , Worf once said , " " Nothing is more honorable than victory . " " From this point of view , using a cloak ed ship to ambush enemies could be considered honorable if it achieved victory . ( ; ) The notion of honor seemed to be highly relative and open to debate . Each and every Klingon could possibly have his own interpretation of what consisted of an honorable means to achieve an end . Even more , some decisions were paradox ical because two different views of honor were in contradiction . For instance , Worf indicated that it was necessary to challenge Gowron ' s leadership ( because he was presumably acting in a dishonorable way ) , while General Martok was convinced that it was dishonorable to challenge the leader of the Klingon Empire in the middle of a war . In another case , while Doctor Antaak ' s deception in claiming to have stabilized Augment DNA , allowing the creation of Klingon Augments , when he and Phlox had merely cured the augment virus might be seen by some as dishonorable , Antaak himself believed that , given the millions of lives this cure would save , his near - certain execution , if caught , would be as honorable a death as a doctor could have . ( ; ) Hence , dishonor was sometimes a concept which compelled Klingons to action . Out of all race s the Klingons had encountered , the Romulan s were widely considered by them to be the most dishonorable ; Worf especially hate d them and considered them dishonorable due to an attack they had committed on Khitomer and the death of his father . However , he later admitted that they were capable of fighting with honor , when they assisted the in defeating Shinzon ' s ship , the " Scimitar " . ( ; ) Klingon opinion on the Federation was widely variable and changed with time , though they were deeply impressed by the sacrifice made by the crew of the , which was destroyed when attempting to defend a Klingon outpost at Narendra III . ( ) When tensions reached a high in 2372 , Gowron claimed that the Federation did not care for honor , though his opinion changed the following year when Benjamin Sisko ' s team infiltrated Ty ' Gokor to assassinate at very high personal risk , leading to a ceasefire between the two sides . ( ) Other races considered dishonorable , by at least some Klingons , include the Breen , ( ) the Ferengi , ( ) and the Jem ' Hadar . ( ) On the other hand , the Jem ' Hadar did understand the concept of honor , with some even respecting it . The Vorta , however , considered it barbaric . ( ) In contrast , the Klingon soldier Leskit claimed to respect the Cardassian s as he felt they fought for their people and followed a code , " just like we do . " ( ) Despite honor being a huge part of Klingon culture and society , there have been known cases of Klingons acting dishonorably . D ' Ghor sought to take over the House of Kozak but did so by attacking the House ' s financial assets , as he did not wish to destroy it through openly challenging it ; Grilka was openly disgusted by the very idea of this , and Gowron later discommended him for his actions . ( ) While explaining the hierarchy on Klingon ships , Jadzia Dax mentioned that cowardice was among the conditions under which a subordinate could challenge a superior ; Miles O ' Brien was surprised at the very idea of Klingons showing cowardice , though Dax stated , " " It ' s been known to happen . " " ( )