cour ‧ te ‧ ous /ˈkɜːtiəs $ ˈkɜːr-/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: corteis , from court ; ⇨ ↑ court 1 ]
polite and showing respect for other people OPP discourteous :
The staff are always courteous and helpful.
a courteous reply
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THESAURUS
▪ polite behaving or speaking in a way that is correct for the social situation you are in, and showing that you are careful to consider other people’s needs and feelings:
He was too polite to ask how old she was.
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‘Excuse me, sir,’ she said in a polite voice.
▪ well-mannered having good manners and knowing the correct way to behave in social situations:
She was beautifully dressed and very well-mannered.
▪ well-behaved polite and not causing any trouble – used about children or animals:
The children were very well-behaved.
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Well-behaved dogs are welcome at the hotel.
▪ courteous /ˈkɜːtiəs $ ˈkɜːr-/ polite and respectful, and behaving rather formally:
The hotel staff were very courteous and helpful.
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a courteous reply
▪ respectful polite and treating someone with respect:
He was very respectful towards all my relatives.
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‘Thank you,’ he said with a respectful bow.
▪ civil polite in a formal way, especially when you do not feel very friendly towards someone:
She’d never liked her father-in-law, but she forced herself to be civil to him.
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When you’ve stopped arguing, you might be able to have a civil conversation.
▪ deferential formal polite towards someone, especially because they are in a more important social position:
In those days women were expected to be deferential to men.