# civil

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ˈsɪv.əl/ · frequency rank #1,245

## Definitions
1. Having to do with people and government office as opposed to the military or religion.
2. Behaving in a reasonable or polite manner; avoiding displays of hostility.
3. In a peaceful and well-ordered state.
4. Relating to private relations among citizens, as opposed to criminal matters.
5. Secular.

## Etymology
From Middle English cyvyl, civil, borrowed from Old French civil, from Latin cīvīlis (“relating to a citizen”), from cīvis (“citizen”). Cognate with Old English hīwen (“household”), hīrǣden (“family”). More at hind; hird.

## Easily confused with
- **coil** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/civil-vs-coil)
- **COVID** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/civil-vs-covid)
- **Cyril** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/civil-vs-cyril)
- **Civ** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/civ-vs-civil)
- **civic** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/civic-vs-civil)
- **Cecil** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cecil-vs-civil)
- **cilia** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/cilia-vs-civil)
- **civics** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/civics-vs-civil)

## Common misspellings (7)
`ccivil`, `ciivl`, `civill`, `civli`, `civvil`, `cviil`, `icvil`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/civil