civil

CEFRB1

/ˈsɪv.əl/

adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Relating to ordinary people or public life, not the military.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Polite and respectful in behavior.

Examples

  • Every citizen has a duty to respect civil rights and laws.

  • The novel is centered on the Civil War.

At a glance

Sits at B1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meanings

  1. Behaving in a reasonable or polite manner; avoiding displays of hostility.

  2. In a peaceful and well-ordered state.

  3. Having to do with people and government office as opposed to the military or religion.

More examples

In context

  • We cannot rule out the possibility that civil war will break out in that country.

  • It was very civil of him to stop the argument.

  • She went into civil service because she wanted to help the people.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The blank war devastated the nation, dividing families and towns.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

From Middle English cyvyl, civil, borrowed from Old French civil, from Latin cīvīlis (“relating to a citizen”), from cīvis (“citizen”). Cognate with Old English hīwen (“household”), hīrǣden (“family”). More at hind; hird. (polite): Compare typologically urbane (<< Latin urbs), courteous (akin to court).