civic
Americanadjective
-
of or relating to a city; municipal.
civic problems.
-
of or relating to citizenship; civil.
civic duties.
-
of citizens.
civic pride.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of civic
1535–45; < Latin cīvicus, equivalent to cīv ( is ) citizen + -icus -ic
Explanation
If something is related to or benefits an individual citizen, it can be described as civic. People often say that it is your civic duty to vote. The adjective civic comes from the Latin word civis, which was the word for a citizen of Ancient Rome. It is also a root word for "city," so civic can also mean anything related to a city. In your town, civic leaders meet frequently and public input is always welcome. So if you have a grievance about a civic issue, you should attend a meeting — or drop by the diner where the mayor always eats breakfast.
Vocabulary lists containing civic
A Long Walk to Water
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Back-Words: Palindromes
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We the People: Civ
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Accompanied by two interns, he doggedly tries to reach everyone on the civic integrity team of Facebook.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
Nearby, LaToya Henry, another woman with deep ties to Black civic life in Detroit, said she had not voted for El-Sayed in the primary either and came because she wanted to hear him explain himself.
From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2026
That’s an approach being used by the Community Organizing Alliance in Maine, a civic group focused on engaging Black and immigrant voters.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
For host cities, they can also be seen as a high-stakes burden that must bring economic, commercial and civic success.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
At first, Minerva made excuses about how Dinorah learned bad civic habits from a corrupt system.
From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
