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humility Meaning & Definition

hyü-ˈmi-lə-tē

What Does Humility Mean?

As a noun, humility means freedom from pride or arrogance.

Humility at a Glance

Part of speechnoun
Pronunciation/hyü-ˈmi-lə-tē/
Syllables4
Synonymshumbleness, demureness and down-to-earthness
Antonymspridefulness, pride and arrogance
Pluralhumilities

Humility Definition (Noun)

  1. freedom from pride or arrogance : the quality or state of being humble

    accepted the honor with humility / The ordeal taught her humility. / There was, in fact, a kind of humility about her and her performance. / This brings us to our last trait of great leaders—a healthy dose of humility.

Synonyms of Humility

Humility synonyms and antonyms →

Antonyms of Humility

Humility in a Sentence

You can tell his humility is real by how he treats ordinary people.

accepted the honor with humility

The ordeal taught her humility.

There was, in fact, a kind of humility about her and her performance.

This brings us to our last trait of great leaders—a healthy dose of humility.

displaying genuine humility, the peace activist accepted the Nobel Prize on behalf of all who have worked to end the violence

accepted the honor with humility / The ordeal taught her humility. / There was, in fact, a kind of humility about her and her performance. / This brings us to our last trait of great leaders—a healthy dose of humility.

Word Forms & Grammar

humilities

humility

humility (usually uncountable, plural humilities)

Words That Rhyme With Humility

Origin of Humility

From Middle English humilite, from Old French (h)umilité, from Latin humilitas (“lowness, meanness, baseness, in Late Latin humility”), from humilis (“low, lowly, humble, earth”). Equivalent to humble +‎ -ity, with /mb/ reduced to /m/ (compare plumbing). Displaced native Old English ēaþmōdnes. Doublet of omertà.

First Known Use

14th century

Pronouncing Humility

The standard pronunciation of humility is /hyü-ˈmi-lə-tē/, spoken in 4 syllables, with the main stress on the second syllable (mi).

Quick Answers About Humility

What part of speech is humility?

Humility is a noun.

What is another word for humility?

Words with a similar meaning to humility include humbleness, demureness and down-to-earthness. See the full list of humility synonyms and antonyms.

What is the opposite of humility?

Antonyms of humility include pridefulness, pride, arrogance and assumption.

What is the plural of humility?

The plural of humility is humilities.

More About Humility On Meaning Stash

More Words Starting With “Humi”

Merriam-WebsterReference content from Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary and Collegiate® Thesaurus © Merriam-Webster Inc.Data credits & licensing