civilian
Americannoun
-
a person who is not on active duty with a military, naval, police, or fire fighting organization.
-
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.
-
a person versed in or studying Roman or civil law.
adjective
noun
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
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.
All of JL Mag’s products are for civilian use and export revenue only accounts for only 18% of total sales, management said, adding that its Japan exposure is very small.
Omar says a recruiter there had offered the men what they understood to be civilian work guarding oil facilities in Russia.
From BBC
"Sadly, Myanmar appears to be trapped in the cycle of atrocities and impunities," Jallow said, referring to the military's overthrow of the civilian government in 2021.
From BBC
It said a "civilian target" was hit, but did not elaborate on the exact location or the extent of any damage.
From Barron's
The U.S. launched wide-scale strikes against Islamic State targets in Syria on Saturday in response to the killing of two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter last month.
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.