uncivilized
Americanadjective
adjective
-
(of a tribe or people) not yet civilized, esp preliterate
-
lacking culture or sophistication
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of uncivilized
Explanation
Uncivilized means wild and barbaric, although people also use it to mean impolite. The uncivilized three-year-olds ate lasagna with their hands and then chased the cat around the house before their parents intervened. If a person is civilized, they behave politely. When an entire group or culture is described as civilized, it means they are socially, culturally, or technologically advanced. When you add the prefix un- ("not") you get the opposite: "That town is so uncivilized, they don't even get cellphone reception." And your little brother, burping in the back of the car while he kicks your seat from behind? Definitely uncivilized.
Vocabulary lists containing uncivilized
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.
On Wednesday, Uncivilized celebrates the release by beginning a run of monthly shows at Barbès.
From New York Times • Mar. 9, 2017
Uncivilized is a little too raw to be called atmospheric, a little too pub-band to be called jazz, and a little too antivirtuoso to be called orchestral.
From New York Times • Mar. 9, 2017
"Uncivilized man may have been bloodthirsty," observes the Journal of the American Medical Association, not referring to the glistening eyes and panting gills of Las Vegas.
From Time Magazine Archive
Anthropology.—Notes and Queries on Anthropology, for the use of Travellers and Residents in Uncivilized Lands.
From How to Form a Library, 2nd ed by Wheatley, Henry Benjamin
Uncivilized people almost always have some such notion of reaching a higher plane of power, or more especially of luck, by self-discipline.
From Folkways A Study of the Sociological Importance of Usages, Manners, Customs, Mores, and Morals by Sumner, William Graham
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.
