courteous
Americanadjective
adjective
Related Words
See civil.
Other Word Forms
- courteously adverb
- courteousness noun
- overcourteous adjective
- overcourteously adverb
- overcourteousness noun
- pseudocourteous adjective
- pseudocourteously adverb
- quasi-courteous adjective
- quasi-courteously adverb
Etymology
Origin of courteous
1225–75; court + -eous; replacing Middle English co ( u ) rteis < Anglo-French; court, -ese
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.
Remember to be a courteous visitor when viewing wildflowers.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2026
While we should all try to be courteous and get along, part of maturity is realizing that you won’t click with everyone.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 22, 2026
"It's a perfect, simple, sober homage" to not only a talented artist but a "courteous, splendidly refined" person, said Giulia Carraro, 75, a former personal assistant who moved in his circle.
From Barron's • Jan. 21, 2026
“Greenland, and the sovereign state Denmark, have always been courteous and responsive hosts going back many decades,” said Stavridis.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 13, 2026
“It is not courteous to the people around you.”
From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth
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.
