Synonyms for courteous
- adjective
Most common
All synonyms
Adjective
1. Polite
polite, gracious, attentive, respectful, affable, well-behaved, well-mannered, nice, well-bred, obliging, gallant, genteel, suave, civil, gentlemanly, urbane, chivalrous, amicable, deferential, civilized, civilised UK, mannerly, courtly
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Showing regard or thought for others; especially, displaying good manners or etiquette.
a courteous gentleman a courteous gesture
Choose the right word
Civil is a colder and more distant word than polite; courteous is fuller and richer, dealing often with greater matters, and is used only in the good sense. Genteel refers to an external elegance, which may be showy and superficial, and the word is thus inferior to polite or courteous.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- polite My mother taught me that it's not polite to point.
- respectful I stood at a respectful distance from the old man.
- gracious I didn't know that you are such a gracious person.
- attentive Come on, be attentive, so you don’t let me go wrong.
- moral Moral leadership is more powerful than any weapon.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| courteous | steady | |
| polite | rising | |
| respectful | rising | |
| gracious | rising | |
| attentive | rising | |
| moral | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- nice1
- 5 letters
- civil2, moral2, suave1
- 6 letters
- polite2, urbane2
- 7 letters
- gallant2, affable3, genteel2, courtly2
- 8 letters
- gracious2, amicable4, obliging3, mannerly
- 9 letters
- civilized3, attentive3, civilised
- 10 letters
- respectful3, chivalrous
- 11 letters
- gentlemanly4, deferential4
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (civil2 = 2 syllables).