civilian

American  

[si-vil-yuhn] / sɪˈvɪl yən /

noun

1. a person who is not on active duty with a military, naval, police, or fire fighting organization.

2. Informal. anyone regarded by members of a profession, interest group, society, etc., as not belonging; nonprofessional; outsider.

   We need a producer to run the movie studio, not some civilian from the business world.

3. a person versed in or studying Roman or civil law.

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adjective

1. of, pertaining to, formed by, or administered by civilians.

civilian British  

/ sɪˈvɪljən /

noun

1. 1. a person whose primary occupation is civil or nonmilitary

   2. ( as modifier )

      civilian life

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Other Word Forms

• anticivilian adjective
• noncivilian noun
• procivilian adjective

Etymology

Origin of civilian

1350–1400; Middle English: student of civil law < Old French civilien (adj.); civil, -ian

Explanation

The most common meaning for civilian is simply someone who is not in the military. It can also refer to any object that is not military in origin — e.g., "civilian clothes" or "civilian life." The meaning of civilian as a non military person is a relatively new one, dating from the early 19th century. Before that it referred to the code of law that governed non-military life. In fact for hundreds of years a civilian was somebody who was a judge or otherwise an expert on the law that applied outside military courts. Because it comes originally from a French word, remember to spell it with only one "l," even though it sounds like it should have two.

Example Sentences

There might have to be some exceptions for inbound civilian goods.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026

He did not promise to bring harm to their civilian families.

From Slate • Apr. 13, 2026

He said there was a "moral obligation to protect the civilian population from the atrocious effects of war".

From Barron's • Apr. 12, 2026

He could continue to ratchet up the US attacks on Iran, possibly doing long-term damage to the nation's civilian infrastructure, adding to a humanitarian crisis and further destablising the global economy.

From BBC • Apr. 12, 2026

It seems that any and all civilian traffic is being directed onto this road.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

Related Words

• citizen
• noncombatant