Standard Lemma guide

incivil

adj · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: /ɪnˈsɪv.ɪl/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Displaying a lack of courtesy; rude, impolite.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: rare

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: discourteous, uncivil, uncouth, aweless, improper, bad-mannered, barbaric, bold, bumptious, crude, churlish, impudent, gauche, ill-bred, ill-mannered, impolite, incivil, insolent, lack-grace, mismannered, rantipole, rough, rude, uncivilized, uncourteous, uncultured, underbred, unmannerly, unpolished, unpolite, unrefined

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Uncivilized, barbarous.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: rare

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: barbaric, heathen, uncultured, animalistic, barbarian, barbarious, barbarous, brutal, brutish, Gothic, Gothlike, grim, heathenish, heathenly, heathenous, incivil, pagan, savage, tenebrose, truculent, uncivil, uncivilized, uncouth, uncultivated, uplandish, wolfish

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Italic *n̥- Latin in-bor. Middle English in- English in- English civil English incivil From in- + civil.

Across languages

Translations

11 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: incivil — Want of courtesy
  • Czech: nezdvořilý — Want of courtesy
  • Finnish: epäkohtelias — Want of courtesy
  • French: incivil — Want of courtesy
  • Greek: αγενής (agenís) — Want of courtesy
  • Spanish: incivil — Want of courtesy
  • Catalan: incivilitzat — Want of civilization
  • Finnish: sivistymätön — Want of civilization
  • French: incivilisé — Want of civilization
  • Spanish: salvaje — Want of civilization
  • Spanish: bárbaro — Want of civilization