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.

One minute we are raging against the perils of A.I., and the next, docilely accepting Gemini’s take on the best Caribbean vacation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026

“She has backbone; it’s not as though she is just docilely going ahead and doing anything you want her to do,” Sullivan said in the 2002 Times report.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 29, 2023

Like the ones by your sink, most lay docilely on the ocean floor without moving.

From Science Magazine • Nov. 3, 2021

Reprimanded for bouncing a ball in the kitchen, he rolled his eyes like any 9-year-old, then docilely went outside.

From New York Times • May 17, 2012

He came around the car and sat docilely by the young man, waiting for his reward.

From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall