comity

noun

co·​mi·​ty ˈkä-mə-tē  ˈkō- 

plural comities

1

a

: friendly social atmosphere : social harmony

group activities promoting comity

bipartisan comity in the Senate

b

: a loose widespread community based on common social institutions

the comity of civilization

c

: comity of nations

trans-Atlantic comity

d

: the informal and voluntary recognition by courts of one jurisdiction of the laws and judicial decisions of another

2

: avoidance of proselytizing members of another religious denomination

Did you know?

"Our country soweth also in the field of our breasts many precious seeds, as … honest behavior, affability, comity," wrote English clergyman Thomas Becon in 1543. Becon's use is an early documented appearance of comity—a word derived from Latin cōmitās, meaning "friendliness, courtesy, or graciousness." Comity is largely used in political and judicial contexts. Since 1804, comity of nations has referred to countries bound by a courteous relationship based on mutual recognition of executive, legislative, and judicial acts. And, in legal contexts, comity refers to the recognition by courts of one jurisdiction of the laws and judicial decisions of another.

Synonyms

• harmony
• peace

Examples of comity in a Sentence

the comity that has always existed among the town's houses of worship

Recent Examples on the Web

In essence, the United States promised protection in exchange for military access and political-economic comity in Asia but without demanding fully reciprocal protection for itself. —Ely Ratner, Foreign Affairs, 27 May 2025

Gone are the prophecies of ever-accelerating integration and the paeans to trade and investment promoting prosperity and comity for all. —Foreign Affairs, 10 June 2021

In the interest of comity, then, and in the hopes for an impressively long list of signatories, the hosts would have fudged the question. —Neal B. Freeman, National Review, 13 Mar. 2025

The same day, Zhu Jingyang, the Chinese Ambassador to Colombia, released a flurry of posts celebrating a new age of comity between the two countries. —Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 25 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin cōmitāt-, cōmitās "friendliness, courtesy, graciousness," from cōmis "kind, obliging, gracious" (probably going back to Old Latin cosmis, of uncertain origin) + -itāt- -itās -ity

Note: The Latin word cōmis (Old Latin cosmis, assuming that this word in the Duenos Inscription has been correctly identified) has traditionally been analyzed as *co-smei̯- "draw one's face into a smile," with the Indo-European base *smei̯- "laugh, smile" (see smile entry 1)—though a derivational mechanism for turning such a verbal compound into an unsuffixed adjective is left unspecified. An alternative explanation as a denominal adjective "having/accompanied by a smile" is possible (of the compound type represented by Greek éntheos "full of/possessed by a deity"), though there is no Indo-European evidence for a corresponding noun *smi- "smile."

First Known Use

1543, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing comity

• comity of nations

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

comity

noun

co·​mi·​ty ˈkäm-ət-ē  ˈkō-mət- 

plural comities

: courteous behavior : civility

Legal Definition

comity

noun

co·​mi·​ty ˈkä-mə-tē, ˈkō- 

1

: comity of nations

2

: the informal and voluntary recognition by courts of one jurisdiction of the laws and judicial decisions of another

called also judicial comity

compare choice of law, federalism, full faith and credit