noun · 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.
UK:/səˈvɪ.lɪ.ti/
UK:/ˌsɜːˈvɪ.lɪ.ti/
US:/sɚˈvɪ.lɪ.ti/
US:/ˌsɝˈvɪ.lɪ.ti/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:S ER1 V IH0 L AH0 T IY2
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
The condition of being servile.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
abject or cringing submissiveness
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: obsequiousness, subservience
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: submissiveness
Narrower terms: sycophancy
History
Etymology
Etymology tree English servile Proto-Indo-European *-teh2 Proto-Indo-European *-ts Proto-Indo-European *-teh2ts Latin -itāsder. Old French -itebor. Middle English -ite English -ity English servility From servile + -ity.
Across languages
Translations
29 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Bulgarian:
раболепие
(rabolepie)
— condition of being servile
Bulgarian:
сервилност
(servilnost)
— condition of being servile
Chinese Mandarin:
奴性
(núxìng)
— condition of being servile
Czech:
servilnost
— condition of being servile
Czech:
servilita
— condition of being servile
Finnish:
nöyryys
— condition of being servile
Galician:
servilismo
— condition of being servile
German:
Servilität
— condition of being servile
German:
Servilismus
— condition of being servile
German:
Speichelleckerei
— condition of being servile
Greek:
ραγιαδισμός
(ragiadismós)
— condition of being servile
Greek:
δουλικότητα
(doulikótita)
— condition of being servile
Greek:
ανελευθερία
(anelefthería)
— condition of being servile
Irish:
uirísle
— condition of being servile
Italian:
servilismo
— condition of being servile
Japanese:
隷従
(reijū)
— condition of being servile
Japanese:
卑屈
(hikutsu)
— condition of being servile
Japanese:
奴隷根性
(dorei konjō)
— condition of being servile
Latin:
servīlitās
— condition of being servile
Polish:
serwilizm
— condition of being servile
Romanian:
servilism
— condition of being servile
Romanian:
servilitate
— condition of being servile
Russian:
раболе́пие
(rabolépije)
— condition of being servile
Spanish:
servilismo
— condition of being servile
Swedish:
servilitet
— condition of being servile
Swedish:
underdånighet
— condition of being servile
