obedient
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of obedient
1175–1225; Middle English < Old French < Latin oboedient- (stem of oboediēns ), present participle of oboedīre to obey; see -ent
Explanation
If you always do what you’re told, you can be described as obedient. Authority figures love to have obedient followers. When you realize that the word obedient comes from a Latin word meaning “to obey,” it’s easy to remember what obedient means. Use obedient to describe someone who knows the rules, toes the line, and follows instructions. The word can refer to people (an obedient student), a group (obedient citizens), or even animals (an obedient dog).
Vocabulary lists containing obedient
Dog Vocabulary: A Canine Lexicon
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"Two Kinds"
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Drama
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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.
“I just wanted the house to feel vibrant,” says LeFevere, founder of branding agency Obedient.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 13, 2024
Akhil Sharma’s first novel, “An Obedient Father,” was a critical hit.
From New York Times • Jul. 13, 2022
Cusack tweeted that he eventually stood up “just not on que - like an Obedient pet.”
From Fox News • May 23, 2019
Akhil Sharma is the author of the 2015 Folio prize-winning novel Family Life as well as An Obedient Father, for which he won the 2001 Hemingway Foundation/PEN award.
From The Guardian • Sep. 4, 2016
Obedient to Sirius’s wish of hearing about anything odd at Hogwarts, Harry sent him a letter by brown owl that night, explaining all about Mr. Crouch breaking into Snape’s office, and Moody and Snape’s conversation.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
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.
