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Sincerity may be humble but she cannot be servile.
Lord Byron

Meaning of "servile" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD SERVILE

From Latin servīlis, from servus slave.
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Etymology is the study of the origin of words and their changes in structure and significance.
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PRONUNCIATION OF SERVILE

servile  [ˈsɜːvaɪl] play
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GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF SERVILE

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Servile is an adjective.
The adjective is the word that accompanies the noun to determine or qualify it.

WHAT DOES SERVILE MEAN IN ENGLISH?

servile

Slavery

Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation. Historically, slavery was institutionally recognized by most societies; in more recent times, slavery has been outlawed in all countries, but it continues through the practices of debt bondage, indentured servitude, serfdom, domestic servants kept in captivity, certain adoptions in which children are forced to work as slaves, child soldiers, and forced marriage. Slavery is officially illegal in all countries, but there are still an estimated 20 million to 30 million slaves worldwide. Mauritania was the last jurisdiction to officially outlaw slavery, but about 10% to 20% of its population is estimated to live in slavery. Slavery predates written records and has existed in many cultures. Most slaves today are debt slaves, largely in South Asia, who are under debt bondage incurred by lenders, sometimes even for generations.

Definition of servile in the English dictionary

The first definition of servile in the dictionary is obsequious or fawning in attitude or behaviour; submissive. Other definition of servile is of or suitable for a slave. Servile is also existing in or relating to a state of slavery.

WORDS THAT RHYME WITH SERVILE


facile
ˈfæsaɪl
file
faɪl
I´ll
aɪl
isle
aɪl
juvenile
ˈdʒuːvɪˌnaɪl
kyle
kaɪl
lifestyle
ˈlaɪfˌstaɪl
meanwhile
ˈmiːnˌwaɪl
mile
maɪl
mobile
ˈməʊbaɪl
profile
ˈprəʊfaɪl
revile
rɪˈvaɪl
smile
smaɪl
style
staɪl
textile
ˈtɛkstaɪl
tile
taɪl
vile
vaɪl
Weill
vaɪl
Weyl
vaɪl
while
waɪl

WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE SERVILE

servicemen
servicer
services
servicewoman
servicewomen
servicing
servient
servient tenement
serviette
serviette ring
servile work
servilely
servileness
servilism
servility
serving
serving dish
serving hatch
serving spoon
servitor

WORDS THAT END LIKE SERVILE

agile
automobile
awhile
chile
compile
corpus vile
crocodile
difficile
domicile
exile
fragile
half-mile
hostile
infantile
jus civile
pile
stile
utile
versatile
wait-a-while

Synonyms and antonyms of servile in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «SERVILE»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «servile» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of servile

Translation of «servile» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF SERVILE

Find out the translation of servile to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of servile from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «servile» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

奴性
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

servil
570 millions of speakers

English

servile
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

ग़ुलामी
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

ذليل
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

рабской
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

servil
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

ক্রীতদাসতুল্য
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

servile
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Budak lelaki
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

unterwürfig
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

卑屈な
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

노예
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Servile
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

hèn hạ
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

கொத்தடிமை
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

गुलाम
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

köle
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

servile
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

służalczy
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

рабської
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

servilă
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

δουλοπρεπής
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

kruiperig
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

servil
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

servile
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of servile

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «SERVILE»

The term «servile» is regularly used and occupies the 81.467 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Regularly used
62
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «servile» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of servile
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «servile».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «SERVILE» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «servile» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «servile» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about servile

EXAMPLES

3 QUOTES WITH «SERVILE»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word servile.
1
Lord Byron
Sincerity may be humble but she cannot be servile.
2
Suzanne Collins
There's a basis for the war, historically, in the 'Hunger Games,' which would be the third servile war, which was Spartacus' war, where you have a man who is a slave who is then turned into a gladiator who broke out of the gladiator school and led a rebellion and then became the face of the war.
3
Thalia
This is the fantasy of every woman - to hold at our feet servile and tame slaves, like in Roman times. And the worse we treat them, the more passionate they become.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «SERVILE»

Discover the use of servile in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to servile and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
The Servile Mind: How Democracy Erodes the Moral Life
In The Servile Mind: How Democracy Erodes the Moral Life, Kenneth Minogue explores the intelligentsia’s love affair with social perfection and reveals how that idealistic dream is destroying exactly what has made the inventive Western ...
Kenneth Minogue, 2013
2
The Servile State
The Servile State, published in 1912, is Hilaire Belloc's foray into economic theory and philosophy.
Hilaire Belloc, 2007
3
Spartacus: The True History of Rome's Greatest Hero & the ...
In the modern Louvre of Paris, you can find, amidst a collection of other French sculptures, a 2.12 meter-tall marble statue of Spartacus, naked, broken chains hanging from his wrists, his eyes showing both a pensive serenity and a cold ...
Patrick Kelly, 2011
4
Slaves and Slavery in Muslim Africa: The servile estate
br br li This title available in eBook format. a href="http: //www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk/?isbn=0203988175" Click here for more information /a . br li Visit our eBookstore at: a href="http: //www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk/" www.ebookstore ...
John Ralph Willis, 1985
5
Life at the Bottom of Babylonian Society: Servile Laborers ...
The work marks a step forward in the use of quantitative measures in conjunction with cuneiform sources to achieve a better understanding of the social and economic forces that affected ancient Near Eastern populations.
Jonathan S. Tanny, 2011
6
Ireland and her Servile War
Robert Alexander Shafto ADAIR (Baron Waveney.) IRELAND AND HER SERVILE WAR. BY "z. COLONEL ADAIR, F.R.S., ~.-_- .. . AUTHOR OF “ THE WINTER 0F 1846-7 IN ANTRIM." LONDON: WILLIAM RIDGWAY, PICCADILLY. DUBLIN: ...
Robert Alexander Shafto ADAIR (Baron Waveney.), 1866
7
Moral Personhood: An Essay in the Philosophy of Moral Psychology
In terms of the vocabulary we have developed, we would describe the servile individual as one who elects to decide, with respect to a whole class of higher order beliefs and expectations— namely, the moral ones, that they are no longer to be ...
G. E. Scott, 1990
8
Between sovereign domain and servile tenure: the development ...
Analysis The Development Of Land Tenure Arrangement In 25 Provinces Of 1961 Century Java-Campus These Developments To Similar Processes In India And Russia. 7 Chapters-Acknowledgement, Abbreviations, Notes-References, Map.
P. Boomgaard, 1989
9
An African Indian Community in Hyderabad: Siddi Identity, ...
3. CONCEPTS. OF. SLAVERY. AND. SERVILE. INSTITUTIONS. Slavery has been a constant feature of human history, appearing in nearly every part of the world. We can trace it back to the earliest civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt, and ...
Ababu Minda Yimene, 2004
10
Miscellaneous Essays Relating to Indian Subjects
Ka, the common prefix. Note that, in - general a servile may be known by the Ka' tafi m Mou absence, of accent, or of broad vowel where writing is used. Kah. A- kah in Absné A servile, as in a-shom, a-sa, 8w. Zwké in Altekesek % Zapsiparg' eile, ...
Brian Houghton Hodgson, 2013

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «SERVILE»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term servile is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Tom Mulcair calls Essex MP Jeff Watson a 'servile follower' of PMO
"Jeff Watson has been the most servile follower of every line ever written for him by Prime Minister [Stephen] Harper's office," said Mulcair. With respect to the ... «CBC.ca, Jul 15»
2
Daily criticizes Slovenian govt. as "servile to Dacic"
Daily criticizes Slovenian govt. as "servile to Dacic". The Slovenian government's decision not to send soldiers and airplanes to Croatia's Operation Storm ... «B92, Jul 15»
3
'Minions' film too much mellow yellow
It's the role of a minion to be a servile follower of a person in charge. That means they are resigned to play the supporting role. That's the problem with the new ... «Fresno Bee, Jul 15»
4
Another servile portrait of NARAL President Ilyse Hogue is …
I offer as Exhibit One yesterday's slavishly servile Washington Post portrait of NARAL President Ilyse Hogue. You have to read Style” section, reporter Ellen ... «National Right to Life News, Jun 15»
5
Scepticism beats servile conformism but there are limits
Obviously no-one wants to return to the servile mindset of a past era. And it shouldn't be forgotten that there will always be vested interests looking for a biddable ... «Irish Independent, May 15»
6
Buttafuoco: giornalismo spazzatura, troppo servile nei confronti di …
Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, in un'intervista al Giornale, dice la sua circa il rapporto Governo-media. Un legame che ha raggiunto livelli morbosi, di troppa vicinanza, ... «Termometro Politico, Apr 15»
7
Renzi il vassallo: arrogante in casa, docile e servile con i potenti
Ora è ufficiale: esistono due Renzi. Quello che comanda con straffottenza in Italia e quello servile e accomodante che viaggia per il mondo. D'altronde questo ... «Imola Oggi, Apr 15»
8
New York Times: US Enemies Have 'Propaganda,' America Has …
New York Times: US Enemies Have 'Propaganda,' America Has 'Public Diplomacy'–and a Servile Private Sector. By Jim Naureckas. Global Research, April 17, ... «Center for Research on Globalization, Apr 15»
9
Pourquoi parle-t-on de "fayot" pour une personne servile ?
Pour se moquer de quelqu'un de très zélé, on dit que c'est un fayot. Ce terme est né dans le monde de la marine militaire au milieu du XIXe siècle. «DirectMatin.fr, Apr 15»
10
Reporters' Censorship Brags Spark Debate During China's …
Against that background, seeing Chinese journalists flaunt a servile attitude rubbed many the wrong way. One critical take came, perhaps not surprisingly, from a ... «Wall Street Journal, Mar 15»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Servile [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/servile>. May 2024 ».
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