civil
/ˈsɪv.əl/adjective
civil is spelled C-I-V-I-L: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 85 times per million words in written English, the 1,251st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, civil means “Having to do with people and government office as opposed to the military or religion” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in civil?
| Letters | 5: C-I-V-I-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 85 times per million words; the 1,251st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is civil?
Civil appears 85 times per million words in written English, the 1,251st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce civil?
- US /ˈsɪv.əl/
Civil has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-civil.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of civil
- more civil comparative
- civiler comparative
- most civil superlative
- civilest superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does civil mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
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.
- 2
Behaving in a reasonable or polite manner; avoiding displays of hostility.
It was very civil of him to stop the argument.
- 3
archaicIn a peaceful and well-ordered state.
- 4
Relating to private relations among citizens, as opposed to criminal matters.
a civil case
- 5
Secular.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate civil?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of civil: civ.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Civil in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | civil |
| German | zivil, bürgerlich , zivilisiert |
| Portuguese | civil , civilizado |
| Spanish | civil |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does civil come from?
From Middle English cyvyl, civil, borrowed from Old French civil, from Latin cīvīlis (“relating to a citizen”), from cīvis (“citizen”) ultimately from proto-Indo-European *ḱey-. Cognate with Old English hīwen (“household”), hīrǣden (“family”). More at hind; hird. (polite): Compare typologically urbane (<< Latin urbs), courteous (akin to court).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).