as in humbly
in a manner showing no signs of pride or self-assertion
the dominant personality, he is always taking advantage of his so-called best friend, who just meekly accepts it
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Recent Examples of meekly
Ball handlers would dribble close to the basket, only to meekly back away, sensing him looming.
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Andrew Greif, NBC news, 17 Dec. 2025
In other words, students prepare for citizenship in a disputatious society by practicing the civic arts—by asserting and advocating for their views—not by meekly absorbing lessons from their instructors.
—Christopher L. Eisgruber, Time, 9 Oct. 2025
Well, after years of stuttering, pausing, juddering, waiting for the goalkeeper to dive and then rolling spot kicks meekly into the net, Nick Woltemade may have just reversed the trend.
—Tim Spiers, New York Times, 6 Oct. 2025
United finished 15th in the Premier League, their lowest league position since they were relegated in 1974, and surrendered meekly to Tottenham in the Europa League final.
—Dan Cancian, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for meekly
Adverb
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Chalamet wore a conservative suit and tie and humbly thanked his fellow nominees, a dramatic shift in tone for the actor, who has tended toward the grandiose of late.—
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In reality, many of the levees still in use today began much more humbly.—
Adverb
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Shields, 62, sheepishly joked after two false starts.—
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An engineer with a litter-picker grabbed the fallen cloth and sheepishly moved it behind the machine, out of my line of sight.—
Adverb
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As seen in a video shared to X by Lizzie Robinson of ITV, the Princess of Wales politely said hello to a patient there, asked her name and made the connection between the woman and William, the heir to the throne.—
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Fear, hunger and repression did not stop politely at national borders.—
Cite this Entry
“Meekly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/meekly. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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