ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Civil

Definition, Meaning & Examples

Pronunciation /ˈsɪv.əl/ · Part of speech adjective

Quick meaning: Civil is an adjective meaning (not comparable) Having to do with people and government office as opposed to the military or religion.

Meaning

(not comparable) Having to do with people and government office as opposed to the military or religion.

More Meanings

  1. (comparable) Behaving in a reasonable or polite manner; avoiding displays of hostility.
  2. (law) Relating to private relations among citizens, as opposed to criminal matters.
  3. Secular.
  4. (archaic) In a peaceful and well-ordered state.

Example Sentences

a civil case
It was very civil of him to stop the argument.
They despise each other, but they are always civil in public.
She went into civil service because she wanted to help the people.

Word Forms

Synonyms for civil

Depending on context, synonyms include nonreligious, temporal, worldy, areligious, earthly, irreligious.

Antonyms for civil

Common opposites include anti-civil, impolite, inconsiderate, rude, sidereal, uncivil.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include civic, civilian, civilized, polite, private-sector, official.

Related Dictionary Tools

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.