Civil — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective /ˈsi-vəl/ civ·il

Meaning & Definition of Civil

Civil (adjective)

  1. of or relating to citizens
  2. of or relating to the state or its citizenry
  3. civilized

Civil (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. of or relating to a nation

    "the country was not destroyed by outside enemies but by a series of civil wars"

    similar: national, public
    related: civic, federal, municipal, government, governmental, domestic, internal, intestine, democratic, republican, nationwide
    opposite: nonnational
    near: global, international, alien, external, foreign

  2. showing consideration, courtesy, and good manners

    "please try to be civil to your ex-husband at the upcoming family wedding"

    similar: courteous, genteel, gracious, mannerly, polite, well-bred
    related: attentive, careful, considerate, nice, solicitous, thoughtful, chivalrous, civilized, courtly, gallant, gentlemanlike, gentlemanly, ladylike, ceremonial, ceremonious, red-carpet, couth, formal, smooth, suave, unctuous, urbane, elegant, refined, deferential, dutiful, respectful, submissive, yielding, acceptable, appropriate, becoming, befitting, comme il faut, correct, decent, decorous, fit, fitting, good, meet, proper, respectable, right, seemly, suitable, affable, cordial, friendly, genial, hospitable, pleasant, sociable, felicitous, graceful, demure, humble, meek, modest, unassertive
    opposite: discourteous, ill-bred, ill-mannered, impolite, inconsiderate, mannerless, rude, thoughtless, uncivil, ungenteel, ungracious, unmannered, unmannerly
    near: heedless, inconsiderate, thoughtless, audacious, bold, bold-faced, brash, brassy, disrespectful, impertinent, impudent, insolent, lippy, saucy, shameless, boorish, churlish, clodhopping, clownish, loutish, uncouth, vulgar, casual, informal, unceremonious, improper, inappropriate, incorrect, indecent, indecorous, uncalled-for, unrespectable, unseemly, arrogant, conceited, presuming, presumptuous, pretentious

Related Entry: Civil servant (noun)

Civil servant is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil servant, not for civil.

  1. a worker in a government agency

    "took the examination to become a civil servant in the defense department"

    similar: bureaucrat, functionary, mandarin, public servant
    related: clerk, officeholder, official, officiary, employee, hand, hireling, jobholder, underling, worker

Related Entry: Civil disobedience (noun)

Civil disobedience is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil disobedience, not for civil.

  1. refusal to obey laws as a way of forcing the government to do or change something

    "In an act of civil disobedience, the family sent its tax money to an antiwar organization."

    "A student organization is encouraging civil disobedience as a way to get the university to change its policies."

    similar: noncooperation, balkiness, contrariness, contumacy, defiance, disobedience, frowardness, insubordination, intractability, obstreperousness, rebellion, rebelliousness, recalcitrance, refractoriness, unruliness, waywardness, willfulness, doggedness, hardheadedness, mulishness, obduracy, obdurateness, obstinacy, obstinateness, peevishness, pertinaciousness, pertinacity, perversity, self-will, stubbornness, tenaciousness, tenacity
    opposite: agreeability, amenability, amiability, slavishness, submissiveness, subservience, subserviency, trainability, deference, docility, dutifulness, compliance, obedience, submission, subordinateness, subordination, tractability, tractableness

Related Entry: Civil war (noun)

Civil war is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil war, not for civil.

  1. a a state or period of fighting between groups of people in the same country

    "a region that has had many civil wars"

    similar: cold war, holy war, limited war, police action, world war, conflagration, conflict, hostilities, hot war, war, action, battle, engagement, skirmish, combat, fighting, warfare
    opposite: peace, calm, peacefulness, tranquility, demilitarization, demobilization, disarmament, pacification, ceasefire, truce

Related Entry: Civil court (noun)

Civil court is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil court, not for civil.

  1. as in trial court, criminal court

    similar: criminal court, trial court, bar, bench, forum, tribunal, high court, supreme court, judicatory, judicature, judiciary, court-martial, drumhead court-martial, inquisition, kangaroo court

Related Entry: Civil courts (noun)

Civil courts is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil courts, not for civil.

  1. as in trial courts, criminal courts

    similar: criminal courts, trial courts, bars, benches, forums, tribunals, high courts, supreme courts, judicatories, judicatures, judiciaries, courts-martial, drumhead court-martials, inquisitions, kangaroo courts

Related Entry: Civil union (noun)

Civil union is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil union, not for civil.

  1. as in domestic partnership

    similar: domestic partnership, cohabitation, common-law marriage, attachment, commitment, relationship, intermarriage, miscegenation, mixed marriage, remarriage, betrothal, engagement, espousal, hand, pledge, promise, proposal, troth, bigamy, polyandry, polygamy, polygyny, monogamy, conjugality, connubiality, marriage, match, matrimony, wedlock
    opposite: annulment, divorce, separation

Related Entry: Civil unions (noun)

Civil unions is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil unions, not for civil.

  1. as in domestic partnerships

    similar: domestic partnerships, cohabitations, common-law marriages, attachments, commitments, relationships, intermarriages, miscegenations, mixed marriages, remarriages, betrothals, engagements, espousals, hands, pledges, promises, proposals, troths, bigamies, polyandries, polygamies, polygynies, monogamies, conjugalities, connubialities, marriages, matches, matrimonies, wedlocks
    opposite: annulments, divorces, separations

Related Entry: Civil servants (noun)

Civil servants is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil servants, not for civil.

  1. a worker in a government agency

    "took the examination to become a civil servant in the defense department"

    similar: bureaucrats, functionaries, mandarins, public servants
    related: clerks, officeholders, officials, officiaries, employees, hands, hirelings, jobholders, underlings, workers

Related Entry: Civil wars (noun)

Civil wars is a different word from Civil. The synonyms below are for civil wars, not for civil.

  1. a a state or period of fighting between groups of people in the same country

    "a region that has had many civil wars"

    similar: cold wars, holy wars, limited wars, police actions, world wars, conflagrations, conflicts, hostilities, hot wars, wars, actions, battles, engagements, skirmishes, combats, warfares
    opposite: peaces, calms, tranquilities, demilitarizations, demobilizations, disarmaments, pacifications, cease-fires, truces

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Civil

The most common words with a similar meaning to Civil:

national, public, courteous, genteel, gracious, mannerly, polite, well-bred

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Civil

Words with the opposite meaning of Civil:

nonnational, discourteous, ill-bred, ill-mannered, impolite, inconsiderate, mannerless, rude, thoughtless, uncivil, ungenteel, ungracious, unmannered, unmannerly

Related Words for Civil

civic, federal, municipal, government, governmental, domestic, internal, intestine, democratic, republican, nationwide, attentive, careful, considerate, nice, solicitous, thoughtful, chivalrous, civilized, courtly, gallant, gentlemanlike, gentlemanly, ladylike, ceremonial, ceremonious, red-carpet, couth, formal, smooth

Near Antonyms of Civil

global, international, alien, external, foreign, heedless, audacious, bold, bold-faced, brash, brassy, disrespectful, impertinent, impudent, insolent, lippy, saucy, shameless, boorish, churlish, clodhopping, clownish, loutish, uncouth, vulgar, casual, informal, unceremonious, improper, inappropriate

Origin & Etymology of Civil

Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin civilis, from civis see civic

First known use: 14th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Civil

Words & Phrases Containing Civil

civil death, civil defense, civil disobedience, civil engineer, civil law, civil liberty, civil marriage, civil rights, Civil Rights Movement

Frequently Asked Questions about Civil

What does "Civil" mean?

"Civil" means of or relating to citizens. As an adjective, it is defined as: of or relating to citizens. It has 2 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Civil"?

Other words for "Civil" include national, public, courteous, genteel, gracious, mannerly, polite and well-bred. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Civil" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Civil"?

There are 79 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Civil". Common alternatives include national, public, courteous, genteel, gracious, mannerly, polite and well-bred.

What is the opposite of "Civil"?

Antonyms of "Civil" include nonnational, discourteous, ill-bred, ill-mannered, impolite, inconsiderate, mannerless and rude. Near antonyms include global, international, alien and external.

How do you use "Civil" in a sentence?

Examples of "Civil" in a sentence: "the country was not destroyed by outside enemies but by a series of civil wars"; "please try to be civil to your ex-husband at the upcoming family wedding".

Is "Civil" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Civil" is an adjective.

Is "Civil" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As a B2-level word, "Civil" is typical of Cambridge B2 First (FCE), IELTS band 5.5–6.5, TOEFL iBT 72–94, PTE Academic 59–75, TOEIC Listening & Reading 785+. It is on the Academic Word List, so it appears often in IELTS Academic, TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic, and university texts.

How do you pronounce "Civil"?

"Civil" is pronounced /ˈsi-vəl/ and divided into syllables as civ·il.