meek

adjective

ˈmēk 

1

: enduring injury with patience and without resentment : mild

a meek child dominated by his brothers

2

: deficient in spirit and courage : submissive

"I don't care," came the meek reply

—Annetta Miller

3

: not violent or strong : moderate

his delivery varied from a meek, melodic patter to rapid-fire scriptural allusions

—Bob Trebilcock

meekly adverb

Synonyms

• humble
• modest
• timid

Examples of meek in a Sentence

a meek child dominated by his brothers

She may seem meek and mild but it is all an act.

Recent Examples on the Web

What threatened to be a meek, straight-sets exit for the 13th seed went full-metal crazy on match point down when Bonzi was interrupted from serving it out after a photographer absent-mindedly walked onto the court. —Tim Ellis, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025

Social deficits can manifest as belligerent or meek. —Tao Lin, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025

Sweeney plays a meek diner waitress named Penny Jo, who dreams of becoming a country singer and gets caught up in a bloody battle for a pricey Native American relic. —Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 14 Aug. 2025

Subsequently, Pakistan also bargained down the new American tariffs on its goods from 29% to 19% — relatively meek next to India’s rate. —Andreas Kluth, Mercury News, 14 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse mjūkr gentle; akin to Welsh esmwyth soft

First Known Use

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for meek

• beak
• beek
• bleak
• cheek
• chic
• clique
• creak
• creek
• eke
• freak
• geek
• greek

Kids Definition

meek

adjective

ˈmēk 

1

: putting up with wrongs patiently and without complaint : mild

2

: lacking spirit or self-assurance : humble

meekly adverb

meekness noun