# civil
## English
### Etymology

From Middle English cyvyl, civil, borrowed from Old French civil, from Latin cīvīlis (“relating to a citizen”), from cīvis (“citizen”). Cognate with Old English hīwen (“household”), hīrǣden (“family”). More at hind; hird.

### Pronunciation

* enPR: ʹsĭv-əl IPA: /ˈsɪv.əl/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Rhymes: -ɪvəl

### Adjective

civil (comparative more civil or civiler, superlative most civil or civilest)
* (not comparable) Having to do with people and government office as opposed to the military or religion.
    She went into civil service because she wanted to help the people.
** 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, Canto XXI, page 35:A third is wroth: ‘Is this an hour ⁠For private sorrow’s barren song, ⁠When more and more the people throng The chairs and thrones of civil power?’
* (comparable) Behaving in a reasonable or polite manner; avoiding displays of hostility.
    Antonyms: anti-civil, impolite, inconsiderate, noncivil, rude
    It was very civil of him to stop the argument.
    They despise each other, but they are always civil in public.
* (archaic) In a peaceful and well-ordered state.
** 1593, anonymous author, The Life and Death of Iacke Straw […], Act I:Herein thou haſt done good ſeruice to thy country: VVere all inhumaine ſlaues ſo ſerued as he, England would be ciuill, and from all ſuch dealings free.
* (law) Relating to private relations among citizens, as opposed to criminal matters.
    a civil case
* Secular.
** 1680, A Practical Discourse of Regeneration:As if our Saviour had said, No man can enter into heaven except he be born again; so as he speaketh not only of notorious Sinners, as Adulterers, Drunkards, Swearers, & c. but of all who are in their natural condition, tho' they live never so unblameably, free from scandalous sins, if they be not born again, their civil Righteousness will do them little good, for they shall never see the Kingdom of God.
** 2008, Jerald Finney, God Betrayed, →ISBN, page 174:The word from which "evil" in Romans 13.4 is translated means "generally opposed to civil goodness or virtue, in a commonwealth, and not to spiritual good, or religion, in the church.
** 2013, John Calvin, Calvin's Complete Commentary, Volume 7: Acts to Ephesians:Some grammarians explain this passage as referring to a civil sanctity, in respect of the children being reckoned legitimate, but in this respect the condition of unbelievers is in no degree worse.

#### Derived terms

* civil action
* civil aviation
* civil celebrant
* civil code
* civil court
* civil day
* civil death
* civil defence
* civil defense
* civil disobedience
* civil enforcement officer
* civil engineer
* civil engineering
* civil ensign
* civilian
* civilise
* civilish
* civilist
* civility
* civilize
* civil law
* civil law notary
* civil libertarian
* civil liberties
* civil liberty
* civil list
* civilly
* civil marriage
* civilness
* civilogue
* civil parish
* civil partner
* civil partnership
* civil power
* civil procedure
* civil registry
* civil rightist
* civil rights
* civil rights movement
* civil servant
* civil-service
* civil service
* civil society
* civil status
* civil suit
* civil time
* civil tongue
* civil trial
* civil twilight
* civil union
* civil violation
* civil war
* civil wrong
* civil year
* Common-Civil-Calendar-and-Time Calendar
* keep a civil tongue
* keep a civil tongue in one's head
* keep a civil tongue in one's mouth
* minor civil division
* overcivil
* put a civil tongue in one's head
* put a civil tongue in one's mouth
* ultracivil
* uncivil

#### Related terms

* civic
* civilization

#### Descendants

* → Japanese: シビル (shibiru)

#### Translations

    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

### References

* “civil”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
* civil in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.
* “civil”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

### Anagrams

* clivi

## Asturian
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis.

### Adjective

civil (epicene, plural civiles)
* civil, civilian

#### Derived terms

* civilización
* guerra civil
* xunión civil

### References

* "civil" in Diccionariu de la Llingua Asturiana

## Catalan
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: (Central) [siˈβil]
* IPA: (Balearic, Valencia) [siˈvil]

### Adjective

civil m or f (masculine and feminine plural civils)
* civil
    Antonym: incivil
* civilian
    Antonym: militar

#### Derived terms

* civilització
* civilitzar
* civilment
* guerra civil
* unió civil

#### Related terms

* civilitat

### Noun

civil m or f by sense (plural civils)
* a member of the guàrdia civil

### Noun

civil m (plural civils)
* (colloquial) a preserved sardine
    Synonym: arengada

#### Further reading

* “civil” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

## Chinese
### Etymology

From clipping of English civil engineering.

### Pronunciation

* Cantonese (Jyutping): si$^1$ fou$^2$
* Cantonese
** (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
*** Jyutping: si$^1$ fou$^2$
*** Yale: sī fóu
*** Cantonese Pinyin: si$^1$ fou$^2$
*** Guangdong Romanization: xi$^1$ fou$^2$
*** Sinological IPA : /siː⁵⁵ fou̯³⁵/

### Noun

civil
* (Hong Kong Cantonese) civil engineering; civil engineer

### References

* English Loanwords in Hong Kong Cantonese

## Czech
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈt͡sɪvɪl]

### Noun

civil m anim
* (informal) civilian (non-military person)
    Synonym: civilista

#### Related terms

* civilista
* civilizace
* civilizační
* civilizovaný
* civilizovat
* civilní

### Further reading

* “civil”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
* “civil”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

## Danish
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /siˈviˀl/

### Adjective

civil
* civil (all senses), civilian

#### Inflection

$^1$ When an adjective is applied predicatively to something definite, the corresponding "indefinite" form is used. $^2$ The "indefinite" superlatives may not be used attributively.

#### Derived terms

* civiladministration
* civilarbejder
* civilbefolkning
* civilcourage
* civildommer
* civiletat
* civilforsvar
* civilforsvarsleder
* civilgarde
* civilgardist
* civilhortonom
* civilingeniør
* civilisation
* civilisationskritik
* civilisationssygdom
* civilisatorisk
* civilisere
* civiliseret
* civilisering
* civilist
* civilklædt
* civilkurage
* civilliste
* civilperson
* civilret
* civilretlig
* civilretslig
* civilsamfund
* civilstand
* civilundervisning
* civiløkonom

## French
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /si.vil/
* Homophones: civile, civiles, civils
* Audio:(file)

### Adjective

civil (feminine civile, masculine plural civils, feminine plural civiles)
* civil (war, marriage etc.)
* (politics) lay
* civilian
* (literary) civil, courteous, polite

#### Derived terms

* année civile
* civilisation
* civiliser
* civilité
* code civil
* désobéissance civile
* droit civil
* état civil
* génie civil
* guerre civile
* mariage civil
* pacte civil de solidarité
* partenariat civil
* service civil
* union civile

#### Related terms

* civique
* cité

#### Descendants

* Turkish: sivil

### Noun

civil m (plural civils, feminine civile)
* civilian

### Further reading

* “civil”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

## Galician
### Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin cīvīlis.

### Adjective

civil m or f (plural civís)
* civil, civilian

#### Derived terms

* guerra civil
* unión civil

### Further reading

* “civil”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2025

## Hungarian
### Etymology

Borrowed from German Zivil, from Latin cīvīlis (“relating to a citizen”), from cīvis (“citizen”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈt͡sivil]
* Hyphenation: ci‧vil
* Rhymes: -il

### Adjective

civil (not comparable)
* civilian (not related to the military, police or other governmental professions)
    Synonym: polgári
    civil szervezet ― non-governmental organization
    polgárháború ― civil war

#### Declension
### Noun

civil (plural civilek)
* civilian (a person following the pursuits of civil life, especially one who is not an active member of the armed forces)

#### Declension
### References

* ↑ Tótfalusi, István. Idegenszó-tár: Idegen szavak értelmező és etimológiai szótára (’A Storehouse of Foreign Words: an explanatory and etymological dictionary of foreign words’). Budapest: Tinta Könyvkiadó, 2005. →ISBN

### Further reading

* civil in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (“The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language”, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
* civil in Nóra Ittzés, editor, A magyar nyelv nagyszótára [A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (Nszt.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2006–2031 (work in progress; published a–ez as of 2024).

## Interlingua
### Adjective

civil (not comparable)
* civil, civilian (not associated with the armed forces)

## Norman
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis, from cīvis (“citizen”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱey- (“to lie down, settle; home, family; love; beloved”).

### Adjective

civil m
* (Jersey) polite
* (Jersey) civil

#### Derived terms

* dgèrre civile

## Occitan
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis.

### Pronunciation

* Audio (Languedoc):(file)

### Adjective

civil m (feminine singular civila, masculine plural civils, feminine plural civilas)
* civil

#### Derived terms

* guèrra civila

## Portuguese
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis (“civil”), from cīvis (“citizen”). Doublet of cível.

### Pronunciation

* (Brazil) IPA: /siˈviw/ [siˈviʊ̯]
* (Portugal) IPA: /siˈvil/ [siˈviɫ], /sɨˈvil/ [sɨˈviɫ]
* (Portugal) IPA: /siˈvil/ [siˈviɫ], /sɨˈvil/ [sɨˈviɫ]
** (Northern Portugal) IPA: /siˈbil/ [siˈβiɫ], /sɨˈbil/ [sɨˈβiɫ]
** (Southern Portugal) IPA: /siˈvi.li/, /sɨˈvi.li/
* Rhymes: (Portugal) -il, (Brazil) -iw
* Hyphenation: ci‧vil

### Adjective

civil m or f (plural civis)
* civil; civilian (not relating to the military or clergy)
    Se não quiser levar um tiro, use roupas civis. ― If you don’t want to be shot, use civilian clothing.
* civic (relating to citizens)
    Synonym: cívico
    Antonym: militar
    Deves cumprir tua obrigação civil. ― You must perform your civic duty.
* (law) relating to civil law
    Synonym: cível
    Antonym: criminal
    Estudo direito civil. ― I study civil law.
* occurring between the inhabitants of the same country
    Guerra civil. ― Civil war.
* civil (behaving in a reasonable or polite manner)
    Synonyms: civilizado, cortês, educado, polido
    Antonyms: deseducado, grosseiro, deselegante, feio
    Seja mais civil e pare de criticar as pessoas. ― Be more civil and stop criticising people.

#### Derived terms

* casado no civil
* casar no civil
* guerra civil

### Noun

civil m or f by sense (plural civis)
* civilian, non-combatant (person who is not a member of the military, police or belligerent group)

#### Derived terms

* cível
* civelmente
* cívico
* civilidade
* civilismo
* civilista
* civilização
* civilizar
* civilmente
* civismo

### Further reading

* “civil”, in iDicionário Aulete (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2025
* “civil”, in Dicionário inFormal (in Portuguese), 2006–2025
* “civil” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913
* “civil”, in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2025
* “civil”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2025
* “civil”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025

## Romanian
### Alternative forms

* țivil — archaic and popular

### Etymology

Borrowed from French civil, Latin cīvīlis.

### Adjective

civil m or n (feminine singular civilă, masculine plural civili, feminine and neuter plural civile)
* civil

#### Declension
### Noun

civil m (plural civili)
* civilian

#### Declension
### Related terms

* cetate
* civilitate
* civiliza
* civilizație

## Serbo-Croatian
### Etymology

Borrowed from German Zivil, from French civil, from Latin cīvīlis (“civic, civil”), from cīvis (“citizen”).

### Noun

cìvīl m (Cyrillic spelling цѝвӣл)
* civilian (not related to the military armed forces)

#### Declension
## Spanish
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis (“civil, civic”), from cīvis (“citizen”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: (Spain) /θiˈbil/ [θiˈβ̞il]
* IPA: (Latin America, Philippines) /siˈbil/ [siˈβ̞il]
* Audio (Latin America):(file)
* Rhymes: -il
* Syllabification: ci‧vil
* Homophone: (Latin America) sibil

### Adjective

civil m or f (masculine and feminine plural civiles, superlative civilísimo)
* civil (all senses)

#### Derived terms

* aviación civil
* casarse por lo civil
* civilizar
* civilmente
* código civil
* de civil
* derecho civil
* desobediencia civil
* estado civil
* fiscal de lo civil
* guardia civil
* guerra civil
* libertades civiles
* matrimonio civil
* muerte civil
* posesión civil
* proceso civil
* registro civil
* servicio civil
* sociedad civil
* tribunal civil
* unión civil

#### Related terms

* ciudad
* cívico
* civilidad
* civilización

#### Descendants

* → Tagalog: sibil

### Further reading

* “civil”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

## Swedish
### Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cīvīlis.

### Adjective

civil
* civil, civilian; having to do with people and organizations outside military or police, sometimes also outside religion or team-based activities, such as a professional sports team
* (nominalized, chiefly in the plural) a civilian
    två civilatwo civilians

#### Declension

$^1$ The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative. $^2$ Dated or archaic. $^3$ Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.

#### Derived terms

* civilperson (“civilian”)
* civilstånd (“marital status”)

### References

* civil in Svensk ordbok (SO)
* civil in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
* civil in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)