courtly
Americanadjective
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polite, refined, or elegant.
courtly manners.
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flattering; obsequious.
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noting, pertaining to, or suitable for the court of a sovereign.
adverb
adjective
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of or suitable for a royal court
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refined in manner
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ingratiating
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of courtly
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at court, -ly
Explanation
The word courtly has nothing to do with a basketball court or court of law. Rather, courtly things relate to royal courts: they're sophisticated and grand. Think about the pomp that surrounds a royal wedding in England, and you'll get a sense of the lavish, expensive, regal nature of courtly things. Nothing courtly is common, cheap, or average. Since kings like the finer things in life, courtly things are similarly extravagant and impressive.
Vocabulary lists containing courtly
Tolkien Reading Day, List 11
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Red, White, and Whole
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Howl's Moving Castle
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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.
See Examples For:
The limpid four-movement ballet is both courtly and casual, with its intricately evolving choreographic patterns gently beguiling, as if seen in a crystalline hall of mirrors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 9, 2026
Amir Khusrau, an Indo-Persian poet who documented courtly life during the reign of Alauddin Khalji and Muhammad Bin Tughlaq, mentioned two types of naans in his writings - naan-e-tanuk and naan-i-tanuri.
From BBC ● Dec. 29, 2025
“Irresistible” might be set in the period we know as the Victorian era, and there are royals and attendant paraphernalia, but lovers of polite courtly romances might want to steer clear.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2025
The courtly gentleman guided women around the floor to big band standards with all the aplomb of teenage boys waltzing at a cotillion dance they’ve been forced to attend by their parents.
From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2025
A “tall courtly black man with Shakespearean diction and the stare of an eagle,” Asa Philip Randolph, close friend of Eleanor Roosevelt, headed the 35,000-strong Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
In some ways, Gucci Mane is a holdover from this older, meaner era, which is one reason that a younger, courtlier peer like Drake is so eager to get his blessing.
From The New Yorker ● Aug. 1, 2016
Mr. Kuhn favors a courtlier style, crisp and precise.
From New York Times ● May 15, 2016
His competitive instincts could overwhelm his gentler, courtlier ones.
From New York Times ● Apr. 22, 2016
In comportment and style, Byrd often seemed a Senate throwback to a courtlier 19th century.
From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2010
I much prefer waiting upon Miss Polly Pepper to any other lady in the room," said Mr. Alstyne, with another bow, courtlier than the first, "since Mrs. Alstyne is provided for.
From Five Little Peppers Midway by Margaret Sidney
But Mr. Lovano gave it his courtliest treatment, caressing the wistful melody with a whispery, feathery grace.
From New York Times ● Jul. 26, 2013
Gottfried von Cramm, who put Budge out in the semi-finals that year, greeted the Queen with the courtliest bow of the dav.
From Time Magazine Archive
He is the most reticent of directors -- where the book ogles, the film discreetly observes -- and, here, the courtliest of stars.
From Time Magazine Archive
"My dear young lady," he said, with one of his courtliest bows, when at last Miss Fitzmannering had had enough of it, "you have given us a great treat—you have, indeed."
From With Edged Tools by Henry Seton Merriman
The letter beside her was from Governor Clinton, written in courtliest words, telling her of the grave in New York prepared for him beneath the cenotaph set up by Congress many years before.
From Fort Amity by Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
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.
