1
as in polite
following the established traditions of refined society and good taste
those bygone days when young women were taught how to drink tea while wearing long gloves and other genteel ways of behaving
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2
as in civilized
having or showing a taste for the fine arts and gracious living
she grew up in genteel old Savannah
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3
as in aristocratic
of high birth, rank, or station
the genteel ladies never mixed with the servants prohibited by reason of her genteel birth from marrying the man she loved
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4
as in gracious
showing consideration, courtesy, and good manners
his genteel gesture of holding the door for the ladies
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of genteel
Kirchner and others, who’d met in the PauseAI Discord server, thought that that genteel approach was insufficient.
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Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 4 Dec. 2025
Starring Miami Vice legend Don Johnson as the genteel Captain Robert Massey, Doctor Odyssey made waves for its provocative inclusion of a throuple at the core of the drama.
—Ew Staff, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Dec. 2025
Photography was not an unusual hobby for a young woman of her milieu, and many of Austen’s early images depict a world of genteel Victorian amusements—parties gathered on porches and scenic overlooks, happy pugs, sunny days in leg-of-mutton sleeves.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 22 Nov. 2025
The series offers Whitford his latest opportunity to express general bemusement with the American political process, this time sporting a bushy white beard, and Whigham his latest opportunity to be an uncouth bull in an otherwise genteel china shop.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for genteel
Recent Examples of Synonyms for genteel
Adjective
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This said, the movers were very polite and respectful and removed all of the excess packing.—
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Among her trio of old friends on a once-in-a-lifetime vacation, Kate is the polite peacekeeper.—
Adjective
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Utilizing a far more civilized system, the host at the stand in front of the restaurant gives diners an oddly accurate time to return.—
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Here was a foolish and incompetent tribune of the nation’s racist vulgarians, opposed by the prosperous and the well educated, the civilized and the tolerant.—
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Speaking of which, the concept of royalty among members of PFV is no exaggeration, though some of the blue blood flowing through members’ veins is merely aristocratic.—
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Once owned by Perugia’s noble Raspanti family and later part of the Porta Eburnea district, the estate gradually transformed from a defensive outpost into an aristocratic country residence.—
Adjective
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After the initial encounter, sending a brief email or text is both gracious and strategic.—
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Our recipe hails from Mary Ada Marshall, a resident of Smith Island, who was gracious enough to share her recipe.—
Adjective
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Resar said the issue is technique and having a dedicated coach who specializes in tight ends and can teach him proper footwork and hand placement.—
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After not hosting an official ceremony in 2022, the Golden Globes returned to proper form in 2023, with stars showing off jaw-dropping looks on the red carpet.—
Adjective
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Human adipose tissue is processed into small pellets and cultured in suspension, allowing cells to reorganize and differentiate without extensive manipulation.—
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The daughter of an engineer, she was raised in a cultured bourgeois household in the affluent 16th arrondissement and studied ballet at the Conservatoire de Paris.—
Adjective
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By splicing pop songs and familiar meme formats into cruel detainment footage, ICE strains to attract a younger demographic, hoping to convince people that the agency is a vibrant—and trollishly funny—organization engaged in the noble work of putting away bad guys.—
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In this case, focusing on a dress versus the altruistic work Turner is doing feels like an attempt to discredit that very noble work.—
Adjective
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Constitutional law professor David Schultz, who has taught a class on police, criminal and civil procedure, has some answers.—
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But the memory of decades-long civil unrest, largely ended by a peace agreement signed in 2016, is still fresh enough to provide a real-life context for Teddy’s machinations.—
Cite this Entry
“Genteel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/genteel. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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