gentlemanly
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of gentlemanly
late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; see origin at gentleman, -ly
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.
He’s also among the last of a dying breed: a two-way center who stood out on both ends of the ice, but was also gentlemanly enough to win the Lady Byng trophy three times.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2026
Giving putts is part of playing in a gentlemanly manner.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026
"It's hard to classify this as a gentlemanly action."
From BBC ● Dec. 7, 2023
By the 1700s, when shaving once again became de rigeur and it was considered respectable and gentlemanly to shave, the phrase “clean-shaven” took hold.
From National Geographic ● Nov. 7, 2023
I pulled up in front of her block of flats in Hillbrow, stopped the car, and sat for a moment as I tried to figure out the polite and gentlemanly way to end the evening.
From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah
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.
