civil
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- civic, domestic, municipal, political
- polite, affable, courteous, obliging, refined, urbane, well-mannered

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Antonyms: uncivil, rude
Contrasted words: boorish, churlish, loutish, uncouth, discourteous, ill-mannered, impolite, ungracious
Related Words: cultivated, refined, well-bred, accommodating, affable, cordial, obliging, bland, diplomatic, gracious, politic, suave, urbane

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English Thesaurus: polite, well-mannered, well-behaved, courteous, respectful, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

civ‧il S3 W2 AC /ˈsɪvəl/ adjective
[Date: 1300-1400; Language: Old French; Origin: Latin civilis, from civis; ⇒ civic]

1. [only before noun] relating to the people who live in a country
civil war/disturbance/unrest etc (=fighting etc between different groups of people living in the same country) ⇒ civil liberty, civil rights

2. [only before noun] relating to the ordinary people or things in a country that are not part of military, government, or religious organizations:
They were married in a civil ceremony in May.

3. [only before noun] relating to the laws about the private affairs of citizens, such as laws about business or property, rather than laws about crime ⇒ civil law, criminal:
Many civil cases can be settled out of court.

4. polite in a formal but not very friendly way ⇒ civility:
Try at least to be civil.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

civil
adj.
VERBS be | become
ADV. extremely, remarkably, very | perfectly, quite
PREP. to The teachers were all quite civil to me.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

civil

civil war (=fighting between groups of people in the same country)
His family fled Spain during the Spanish civil war.
civil rights (=the right to vote, be treated fairly etc that everyone should have)
Black people marched in defence of their civil rights.
civil liberties/liberty (=the right to be free to do what you want within the law)
Detention without trial threatens our civil liberties.
civil disobedience/unrest (=when people protest or behave violently)
Unemployment has provoked widespread civil unrest.
civil disturbances/strife (=civil unrest)
Troops have been called in to deal with civil disturbances.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

polite behaving or speaking in a way that is correct for the social situation you are in, and showing that you are careful to consider other people’s needs and feelings:
He was too polite to ask how old she was.
‘Excuse me, sir,’ she said in a polite voice.
well-mannered having good manners and knowing the correct way to behave in social situations:
She was beautifully dressed and very well-mannered.
well-behaved polite and not causing any trouble – used about children or animals:
The children were very well-behaved.
Well-behaved dogs are welcome at the hotel.
courteous /ˈkɜːtiəs $ ˈkɜːr-/ polite and respectful, and behaving rather formally:
The hotel staff were very courteous and helpful.
a courteous reply
respectful polite and treating someone with respect:
He was very respectful towards all my relatives.
‘Thank you,’ he said with a respectful bow.
civil polite in a formal way, especially when you do not feel very friendly towards someone:
She’d never liked her father-in-law, but she forced herself to be civil to him.
When you’ve stopped arguing, you might be able to have a civil conversation.
deferential formal polite towards someone, especially because they are in a more important social position:
In those days women were expected to be deferential to men.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

civil
ˈsɪvl
See: keep a civil tongue in one's head

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲