courteous
/ˈkɝti.əs/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.20 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Showing regard or thought for others; especially, displaying good manners or etiquette.
Example Sentences
- "a courteous gentleman a courteous gesture"
- "Nectar ran / In courteous fountains to all cups outreach'd; / And plunder'd vines, teeming exhaustless, pleach'd / New growth about each shell and pendent lyre; [...]"
- "His exhortations to his assistants to waste no time in getting on with the job, and to be tactful and courteous with those outside the railway service with whom they had to deal, are as apposite today as they were a century ago."
Etymology
From Middle English curteis, from Old French curteis (French courtois), from cort (“court”). By surface analysis, court + -eous. Compare typologically Czech zdvořilý (<~ dvůr), German höflich (<~ Hof). Also note Russian прийти́сь ко двору́ (prijtísʹ ko dvorú). Compare typologically civil, urbane. See pagan for the opposite.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: curteis
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈkɝti.əs/
- British English: /ˈkɜːti.əs/
Inflected Forms
more courteous (comparative)
most courteous (superlative)