demure

de·mure

adjective \di-ˈmyu̇r\

Definition of DEMURE

1

: reserved, modest

2

: affectedly modest, reserved, or serious : coy

— de·mure·ly adverb

— de·mure·ness noun

Examples of DEMURE

1. She was wearing a demure gray suit.
2. the demure charm of the cottage
3. So even if you think you've moved past your reputation as The Rebel, two minutes after getting together with your more demure sister, you're likely to fall back into that hell-raiser role. —Jessica Mehalic, Cosmopolitan, August 2001
4. It looked as though the dress and capelet were one piece. It created a demure look, but if you take off the capelet, it's a seductive strapless dress. —Elizabeth Hayt, Vogue, December 1999
5. I made a lot of friends at Les Tourelles with whom I have kept in touch over the years. There was one darling little girl, much younger than the rest of us, who was sweet, demure, and quiet, with beautiful long hair like Alice in Wonderland. —Anna Russell, I'm Not Making This Up, You Know, 1985

Origin of DEMURE

Middle English

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to DEMURE

Synonyms

coquettish, coy, kittenish

Antonyms

uncoy

Related Words

flirtatious, flirty, girlish; goody-goody, governessy, overmodest, priggish, prim, prudish

Near Antonyms

boon, clubbable (also clubable), companionable, convivial, gregarious, sociable, social; bold, dashing, forceful; brash, forward, overbold, uninhibited, unreserved

Rhymes with DEMURE

abjure, adjure, Adour, allure, amour, Ashur, assure, brochure, ceinture, cocksure, coiffure, conjure, contour, couture, detour, dirt-poor, endure, ensure, faubourg, for sure, Fraktur, grandeur, gravure, guipure, hachure, immure, impure, insure, inure, kultur, land-poor, langur, ligure, manure, mature, mohur, obscure, parure, perdure, procure, rondure, secure, siddur, tambour, tandoor, tenure, Uighur, unmoor, velour, velure