servile

American  

[sur-vil, -vahyl] / ˈsɜr vɪl, -vaɪl /

adjective

1. slavishly submissive or obsequious; fawning.

   servile flatterers.

   Synonyms:

   obsequious

   Antonyms:

   insubordinate

2. characteristic of, proper to, or customary for slaves; abject.

   servile obedience.

   Synonyms:

   lowly, humble, obedient

   Antonyms:

   superior, lordly, disobedient

3. yielding slavishly; truckling (usually followed byto ).

4. extremely imitative, especially in the arts; lacking in originality.

5. being in slavery; oppressed.

6. of, relating to, or involving slaves or servants.

7. of or relating to a condition of servitude or property ownership in which a person is held in slavery or partially enslaved.

   medieval rebellions against servile laws.

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servile British  

/ ˈsɜːvaɪl, sɜːˈvɪlɪtɪ /

adjective

1. obsequious or fawning in attitude or behaviour; submissive

2. of or suitable for a slave

3. existing in or relating to a state of slavery

4. submitting or obedient

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Related Words

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 Word Forms

• nonservile
  adjective
• nonservilely
  adverb
• overservile
  adjective
• overservilely
  adverb
• pseudoservile
  adjective
• pseudoservilely
  adverb
• servilely
  adverb
• servileness
  noun
• servility
  noun
• unservile
  adjective
• unservilely
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of servile

First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English servil(e), serville, from Latin servīlis “of a slave, slavish, servile,” equivalent to serv- (stem of servus “slave”) + -īlis -ile; see also serf ( def. )

Explanation

Servile describes someone who is almost aggressively helpful, like a teacher’s pet who insists on bringing an apple every day even though the teacher doesn’t want it. To call someone servile is an insult. To remember servile, think of the word servant — they both derive from the Latin servus, "enslaved person." The Servile Wars, for example, refer to slave revolts in the Roman Empire. These days, servile describes someone who is so eager to please that it makes you cringe. If you apologize when someone else steps on your foot, you’re being servile.

Example Sentences

At the time of the Third Servile War, women had none of the legal status men held and were commonly limited to the roles of wife and mother.

From Salon • Dec. 20, 2025

However, by picking up the action shortly after the end of the Third Servile War, DeKnight and his writers return Ashur to life just in time to see the Roman Republic begin to crumble.

From Salon • Dec. 7, 2025

Servile and even unceremonial forms of speech had temporarily disappeared.

From Salon • Jan. 11, 2014

Next month the magazine Novena Notes, published by the Servile Fathers to promote novenas to Our Sorrowful Mother, will suspend publication because there is no real demand for it.

From Time Magazine Archive

Servile fear is thus far superior to that natural fear of pain and suffering which all have.

From Moral Theology A Complete Course Based on St. Thomas Aquinas and the Best Modern Authorities by Callan, Charles Jerome