humble
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- modest, meek, self-effacing, unassuming, unostentatious, unpretentious
- lowly, mean, modest, obscure, ordinary, plebeian, poor, simple, undistinguished
[verb]
Synonyms:
- humiliate, chasten, crush, disgrace, put (someone) in their place, subdue, take down a peg (informal)

---

Antonyms: conceited
Contrasted words: ostentatious, pretentious, showy, vain, vainglorious, arrogant, disdainful, haughty, lordly, overbearing, proud, toplofty, aggrandize, exalt, magnify
Related Idioms: bring low, take down a peg or two
Related Words: simple, unobtrusive, unostentatious, unpretentious, acquiescent, compliant, resigned, quiet, subdued, submissive, chagrin, mortify, abash, discomfit, embarrass

---

English Thesaurus: modest, self-effacing, unassuming, humble, unpretentious, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. hum‧ble¹ /ˈhʌmbəl/ adjective
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: Latin humilis 'low, humble', from humus 'earth']

1. not considering yourself or your ideas to be as important as other people’s Antonym : proud ⇒ humility:
a modest and humble man

2. having a low social class or position:
He started his career as a humble peanut farmer.
humble background/origins etc
Iacocca rose from humble beginnings to become boss of Ford.

3. in my humble opinion spoken used humorously to give your opinion about something

4. my humble apologies British English spoken used humorously to say you are sorry

5. [only before noun] simple and ordinary, but useful or effective:
The humble potato may be the key to feeding the world’s population.

6. eat humble pie to admit that you were wrong about something

7. your humble servant British English old use a formal way of ending a letter

8. sb’s humble abode someone’s house or apartment – used humorously:
Welcome to our humble abode.
—humbly adverb

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. humble² verb

1. be humbled if you are humbled, you realize that you are not as important, good, kind etc as you thought you were:
You can’t help but be humbled when you enter this cathedral.

2. [transitive] to easily defeat someone who is much stronger than you are:
The mighty U.S. army was humbled by a small Southeast Asian country.

3. humble yourself to show that you are not too proud to ask for something, admit you are wrong etc:
I knew he had humbled himself to ask for my help.
—humbling adjective:
a humbling experience

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

modest not wanting to talk about your abilities or achievements and to say that you are good at something, even when you are – used to show approval:
Miller, a quiet, modest man, gave credit to Asher for the initial discovery.
She was surprisingly modest about her own achievements as a player.
self-effacing written not wanting to talk about yourself or to attract attention:
Her husband was a quiet, self-effacing man who spent much of his time in his study.
unassuming not wanting to be noticed and not expecting to be treated in a special way:
By now Chapman was famous, but he remained as unassuming as ever.
He then began, in typically unassuming fashion, to establish the first modern dance company.
humble believing that you are not more important, better, or cleverer than other people, and therefore not expecting to be treated in a special way:
A good leader is humble enough to get advice from experts.
unpretentious not trying to seem better than other people, even if you are rich, famous, clever etc:
President Eisenhower was a friendly and unpretentious man who seemed to embody American virtues.
It's his unpretentious boyish charm that ensures Jackie Chan's position as one of the giants of international cinema.
self-deprecating written behaving or talking about your own abilities or achievements in a way that makes them seem unimportant:
Despite his intellect, he had an appealing self-deprecating humour.
The nice thing about him is his self-deprecating manner. His intellectual ability was never pushed at you, yet he obviously had great potential.
a self-deprecating smile

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

humble
̈ɪˈhʌmbl
See: eat humble pie

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲