chivalrous

adjective

chiv·​al·​rous ˈshi-vəl-rəs 

1

: valiant

chivalrous warriors

2

: of, relating to, or characteristic of chivalry and knight-errantry

a chivalrous quest

3

a

: marked by honor, generosity, and courtesy

appreciated the chivalrous acts of the general

b

: marked by gracious courtesy and high-minded consideration especially to women

A chivalrous man offered the woman his seat on the crowded bus.

chivalrously adverb

chivalrousness noun

Synonyms

• noble
• great
• gallant
• honorable
• high

Choose the Right Synonym for chivalrous

civil, polite, courteous, gallant, chivalrous mean observant of the forms required by good breeding.

civil often suggests little more than the avoidance of overt rudeness.

owed the questioner a civil reply

polite commonly implies polish of speech and manners and sometimes suggests an absence of cordiality.

if you can't be pleasant, at least be polite

courteous implies more actively considerate or dignified politeness.

clerks who were unfailingly courteous to customers

gallant and chivalrous imply courteous attentiveness especially to women.

gallant suggests spirited and dashing behavior and ornate expressions of courtesy.

a gallant suitor of the old school

chivalrous suggests high-minded and self-sacrificing behavior.

a chivalrous display of duty

Examples of chivalrous in a Sentence

a kind and chivalrous man

still engages in chivalrous behavior, such as holding doors for people

Recent Examples on the Web

And both the book and the film offered historically nonsensical versions of the Klan as an honorable and chivalrous group fighting for social justice and the virtue of white womanhood. —Jody Mamone, Hartford Courant, 15 Aug. 2025

Xavier is both when first introduced, but the slacker pothead lives long enough to reveal his chivalrous side. —Peter Debruge, Variety, 30 June 2025

The reality is that those men are not of the chivalrous variety, and Charity, who literally wears her heart on her shoulder, is left melancholy. —David John Chávez, Mercury News, 21 June 2025

Archie making deep, chivalrous bows, his baby sister Lilibet cuddling the monarch's shins. —Audrey Schmidt, People.com, 4 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English chivalerous, chevalrous, chyvalrous "excelling in warfare, valiant, exemplifying the ideals of chivalry," borrowed from Anglo-French chevalerus, chevalrous (continental Old French chevalerous), from chevalerie "body of knights serving an overlord, chivalry" + -us, -ous -ous

Note: As noted by the Oxford English Dictionary, first edition, chivalrous was apparently obsolescent by the mid-eighteenth century; Samuel Johnson, in his dictionary (1755), has only a citation from Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene (1590) and remarks "a word now out of use." It was revived in the later eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by Romanticism and a renewed interest in the Middle Ages. The pronunciation of this word and chivalry with \sh\ rather than \ch\, as if they were taken from Modern French, presumably arose at that period.

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

chivalrous

adjective

chiv·​al·​rous ˈshiv-əl-rəs 

1

: of or relating to chivalry

2

a

: having or showing honor, generosity, and courtesy

b

: showing special courtesy and regard to women

chivalrously adverb

chivalrousness noun