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servile
[ sur-vil, -vahyl ]
/ ˈsɜr vɪl, -vaɪl /
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This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
adjective
OTHER WORDS FOR servile
1, 2 cringing, sycophantic.
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Origin of servile
synonym study for servile
1, 2. Servile, menial, obsequious, slavish characterize one who behaves like a slave or an inferior. Servile suggests cringing, fawning, and abject submission: servile responses to questions. Menial applies to that which is considered undesirable drudgery: the most menial tasks. Obsequious implies the ostentatious subordination of oneself to the wishes of another, either from fear or from hope of gain: an obsequious waiter. Slavish stresses the dependence and labori-ous toil of one who follows or obeys without question: slavish attentiveness to orders.
OTHER WORDS FROM servile
Words nearby servile
service tree, service uniform, servicewoman, servient tenement, serviette, servile, servile work, serving, Servite, servitor, servitude
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use servile in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for servile
servile
/ (ˈsɜːvaɪl) /
adjective
obsequious or fawning in attitude or behaviour; submissive
of or suitable for a slave
existing in or relating to a state of slavery
(when postpositive, foll by to) submitting or obedient
Derived forms of servile
servilely, adverbservility (sɜːˈvɪlɪtɪ) or servileness, nounWord Origin for servile
C14: from Latin servīlis, from servus slave
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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