Humble — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective verb /ˈhəm-bəl/ hum·ble

Meaning & Definition of Humble

Humble (adjective)

  1. not proud or haughty, not arrogant or assertive
  2. reflecting, expressing, or offered in a spirit of deference or submission
  3. ranking low in a hierarchy or scale, insignificant, unpretentious

Humble (verb)

  1. to make (someone) humble in spirit or manner
  2. to destroy the power, independence, or prestige of

Humble (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. not having or showing any feelings of superiority, self-assertiveness, or showiness

    "a medical scientist who remained remarkably humble even after winning the Nobel Prize"

    "even though she'd been proven wrong, her attitude was still far from humble"

    similar: demure, down-to-earth, lowly, meek, modest, unassuming, unpretentious
    related: acquiescent, compliant, deferential, resigned, submissive, unaggressive, unassertive, yielding, cowering, cringing, shrinking, ingenuous, naive, plain, simple, unaffected, bashful, diffident, introverted, mousy, overmodest, passive, quiet, reserved, retiring, sheepish, shy, subdued, timid, unobtrusive, aw-shucks, self-deprecating, self-deprecatory, self-effacing
    opposite: arrogant, bumptious, chesty, conceited, egotistic, fastuous, haughty, highfalutin, high-and-mighty, high-handed, high-hat, hoity-toity, huffish, huffy, imperious, lordly, overweening, peremptory, pompous, presuming, presumptuous, pretentious, self-asserting, self-assertive, supercilious, superior, toplofty, uppish, uppity
    near: aggressive, assertive, audacious, bold, brash, brassy, cheeky, forward, impertinent, impudent, saucy, cocksure, cocky, confident, hubristic, overconfident, self-confident, egocentric, egoistic, narcissistic, prideful, self-affected, self-centered, self-complacent, self-conceited, self-congratulatory, self-contented, self-engrossed, self-important, self-obsessed, self-pleased, self-satisfied, smug, stuck-up, swelled-headed, boastful, bombastic, braggy, swaggering, vain, vainglorious, condescending, disdainful, dominant, dominating, domineering, magisterial, overbearing, patronizing, pontificating, flamboyant, ostentatious, showy, extroverted, immodest, outgoing, uninhibited, unreserved

  2. belonging to the class of people of low social or economic rank

    "a humble peasant girl who claimed she was chosen by God to restore the French king to his throne"

    similar: baseborn, common, ignoble, inferior, low, low-life, lowborn, lower-class, lowly, lumpen, mean, plebeian, prole, proletarian, unwashed, vulgar
    related: bourgeois, middle-class, plain, poor, simple, working-class, déclassé, down-market, downscale
    opposite: aristocratic, blue-blooded, genteel, gentle, grand, great, high, highborn, highbred, lofty, noble, patrician, upper-class, upper-crust, wellborn
    near: eminent, illustrious, notable, prominent

  3. showing, expressing, or offered in a spirit of humility or unseemly submissiveness

    "please accept my humble thanks for this unexpected favor"

    similar: abject, base, menial, servile, slavish
    related: hangdog, lamblike, sheepish, demure, lowly, meek, modest, retiring, unassuming, unpretentious, fawning, sycophant, sycophantic, toadyish
    near: arrogant, haughty, high-handed, imperious, lordly, supercilious, superior, uppity

Humble (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes

    "Philip was utterly humbled by a crushing defeat in the first round of the state chess tournament"

    similar: abase, chasten, cheapen, debase, degrade, demean, discredit, disgrace, dishonor, foul, humiliate, lower, shame, sink, smirch, take down
    related: abash, confound, confuse, discomfit, disconcert, discountenance, embarrass, faze, fluster, mortify, nonplus, rattle, belittle, castigate, criticize, cry down, decry, depreciate, detract, diminish, discount, disparage, minimize, put down, ridicule, write off, bad-mouth, defame, defile, libel, malign, slander, affront, insult, censure, condemn, damn, denounce, execrate, reprehend, reprobate
    opposite: aggrandize, canonize, deify, elevate, exalt
    near: acclaim, applaud, boast, celebrate, cheer, cite, commend, compliment, congratulate, decorate, eulogize, extol, fete, hail, honor, laud, praise, salute, tout, acknowledge, recognize, highlight, play up, spotlight, dignify, ennoble, enshrine, ensky, enthrone, glorify, magnify, advance, boost, lift, promote, raise, upgrade, uplift, idealize, romanticize

Related Entry: Humble pie (noun)

Humble pie is a different word from Humble. The synonyms below are for humble pie, not for humble.

  1. as in shame, confusion

    similar: agitation, bother, chagrin, discomfort, discomposure, dismay, disquiet, distress, disturbance, perturbation, unease, uneasiness, upset, abashment, confusion, discomfiture, disconcertment, embarrassment, fluster, mortification, disgrace, ignominy, shame, debasement, degradation, humiliation
    opposite: aplomb, assurance, composure, confidence, coolness, equanimity, poise, self-assurance, self-confidence, self-possession

Related Entry: Humble pies (noun)

Humble pies is a different word from Humble. The synonyms below are for humble pies, not for humble.

  1. as in shames, confusions

    similar: agitations, bothers, chagrins, discomforts, discomposures, dismays, disquiets, distresses, disturbances, perturbations, upsets, abashments, confusions, discomfitures, disconcertments, embarrassments, flusters, mortifications, disgraces, ignominies, shames, debasements, degradations, humiliations
    opposite: aplombs, assurances, composures, confidences, equanimities, poises, self-confidences, self-possessions

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Humble

The most common words with a similar meaning to Humble:

demure, down-to-earth, lowly, meek, modest, unassuming, unpretentious, baseborn, common, ignoble, inferior, low, low-life, lowborn, lower-class, lumpen, mean, plebeian, prole, proletarian, unwashed, vulgar, abject, base, menial, servile, slavish, abase, chasten, cheapen, debase, degrade, demean, discredit, disgrace, dishonor, foul, humiliate, lower, shame

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Humble

Words with the opposite meaning of Humble:

arrogant, bumptious, chesty, conceited, egotistic, fastuous, haughty, highfalutin, high-and-mighty, high-handed, high-hat, hoity-toity, huffish, huffy, imperious, lordly, overweening, peremptory, pompous, presuming, presumptuous, pretentious, self-asserting, self-assertive, supercilious, superior, toplofty, uppish, uppity, aristocratic

Related Words for Humble

acquiescent, compliant, deferential, resigned, submissive, unaggressive, unassertive, yielding, cowering, cringing, shrinking, ingenuous, naive, plain, simple, unaffected, bashful, diffident, introverted, mousy, overmodest, passive, quiet, reserved, retiring, sheepish, shy, subdued, timid, unobtrusive

Near Antonyms of Humble

aggressive, assertive, audacious, bold, brash, brassy, cheeky, forward, impertinent, impudent, saucy, cocksure, cocky, confident, hubristic, overconfident, self-confident, egocentric, egoistic, narcissistic, prideful, self-affected, self-centered, self-complacent, self-conceited, self-congratulatory, self-contented, self-engrossed, self-important, self-obsessed

Word Forms of Humble

Inflections: humbler, humblest, humbled, humbling

Derived words: humbleness (noun), humbly (adverb), humbler (noun), humblingly (adverb)

Origin & Etymology of Humble

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin humilis low, humble, from humus earth; akin to Greek chthōn earth, chamai on the ground

First known use: 13th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Humble

Words & Phrases Containing Humble

humble-bee, humble pie, humble oneself, eat humble pie, from humble origins, of humble origin(s), humblebrag

Frequently Asked Questions about Humble

What does "Humble" mean?

"Humble" means not proud or haughty, not arrogant or assertive. As an an adjective and a verb, it is defined as: not proud or haughty, not arrogant or assertive. It has 4 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Humble"?

Other words for "Humble" include demure, down-to-earth, lowly, meek, modest, unassuming, unpretentious and baseborn. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Humble" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Humble"?

There are 131 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Humble". Common alternatives include demure, down-to-earth, lowly, meek, modest, unassuming, unpretentious, baseborn, common and ignoble.

What is the opposite of "Humble"?

Antonyms of "Humble" include arrogant, bumptious, chesty, conceited, egotistic, fastuous, haughty and highfalutin. Near antonyms include aggressive, assertive, audacious and bold.

How do you use "Humble" in a sentence?

Examples of "Humble" in a sentence: "a medical scientist who remained remarkably humble even after winning the Nobel Prize"; "even though she'd been proven wrong, her attitude was still far from humble"; "a humble peasant girl who claimed she was chosen by God to restore the French king to his throne".

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

"Humble" can be used as an adjective and a verb, depending on the context.

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

As a C1-level word, "Humble" is typical of Cambridge C1 Advanced (CAE), IELTS band 7.0–8.0, TOEFL iBT 95–113, PTE Academic 76–84, TOEIC Listening & Reading 945+. Advanced words like this are also useful for the GRE, SAT, GMAT, and LSAT.

How do you pronounce "Humble"?

"Humble" is pronounced /ˈhəm-bəl/ and divided into syllables as hum·ble.