cour·te·sy
ˈkər-tə-sē 
British also ˈkȯ-
plural courtesies
1
2
a
: general allowance despite facts : indulgence
hills called mountains by courtesy only
cour·te·sy
ˈkər-tə-sē
British also ˈkȯ-
: granted, provided, or performed as a courtesy or by way of courtesy (see courtesy entry 1)
made a courtesy call on the ambassador
Synonyms
Examples of courtesy in a Sentence
Noun
Civilized life cannot be sustained without hypocrisy. A certain moral code, a degree of courtesy and decorum, are necessary to keep our instincts under a modicum of control.
—
Ian Buruma, New York Review of Books, 2 Nov. 2006
Cara, who, courtesy of the cat, had a run in her leggings, picked up the phone in a panic …
—Helen Schulman, Wigwag, November 1990
"Coffee, sir?" asked a sailor. I nodded, still chilled. The courtesy, the ordinariness of these men was in the context somehow curious.
—Fred Reed, Harper's, September 1988
I tried to persuade him that all that Hamish Hamilton had attempted to do was to extend the kind of courtesies which cultural institutions thought to be his due.
—Isaiah Berlin, New York Times Book Review, 12 Apr. 1987
They treated us with courtesy and kindness.
She did it as a courtesy, not because she had to.
Everyone knows each other here, so we won't bother with the usual courtesies.
They shook hands and exchanged courtesies before beginning their discussion.
Adjective
As the heir to an earldom, Stephen was obliged to pay a courtesy call on the British ambassador …
—Ken Follett, The Man from St. Petersburg, 1982
Important visitors to the conference were provided with courtesy cars.
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Ian Buruma, New York Review of Books, 2 Nov. 2006
Cara, who, courtesy of the cat, had a run in her leggings, picked up the phone in a panic …
—Helen Schulman, Wigwag, November 1990
"Coffee, sir?" asked a sailor. I nodded, still chilled. The courtesy, the ordinariness of these men was in the context somehow curious.
—Fred Reed, Harper's, September 1988
I tried to persuade him that all that Hamish Hamilton had attempted to do was to extend the kind of courtesies which cultural institutions thought to be his due.
—Isaiah Berlin, New York Times Book Review, 12 Apr. 1987
They treated us with courtesy and kindness.
She did it as a courtesy, not because she had to.
Everyone knows each other here, so we won't bother with the usual courtesies.
They shook hands and exchanged courtesies before beginning their discussion.
Adjective
As the heir to an earldom, Stephen was obliged to pay a courtesy call on the British ambassador …
—Ken Follett, The Man from St. Petersburg, 1982
Important visitors to the conference were provided with courtesy cars.
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Recent Examples on the WebDavid Fear, Rolling Stone, 17 Nov. 2023
The hotel staff wears posh uniforms courtesy of Arzu Kaprol, a designer who has a boutique in the nearby Paket Postanesi, a historic post office turned chic shopping mall.
—Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 16 Nov. 2023
Photo credits: Portraits courtesy of Tara Fisher for Africana, Kelly Marshall, Bob Hodson, Evan Sung.
—Kristin Braswell, Essence, 16 Nov. 2023
Privet, nandina, Bradford pear, porcelain berry and Asian bittersweet are all invasive berried plants that have spread courtesy of bird dispersal.
—Tovah Martin, Washington Post, 16 Nov. 2023
Spotlight Art work courtesy Fundación Almine y Bernard Ruiz-Picasso; Photograph by Hugard & Vanoverschelde
Art
The fiftieth anniversary of Pablo Picasso’s death has inspired plenty of exhibitions that go big or go deep.
—Condé Nast, The New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2023
Photo: Francois Duhamel / courtesy of Netflix Unlike Moore, who has now worked on five features with the director, May December marks Portman’s first collaboration with Haynes.
—Elaina Patton, Vogue, 16 Nov. 2023
Here’s the young, hot, and not-yet-corrupted version of the future president, courtesy of Billy the Kid’s Tom Blyth.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 16 Nov. 2023
Check out the numbers here, courtesy of CalMatters’ Jeremia Kimelman.
—Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 14 Nov. 2023
Jonathan M. Gitlin, Ars Technica, 16 Oct. 2023
The jaw-dropping transformation comes courtesy stylist Dimitris Giannetos, who regularly works with Fox and a slate of stars like Joey King, Ciara and Gigi Hadid.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 6 Sep. 2023
Our testing also shows that the Tellis in fact works with most body types courtesy of their tailored shape and tailored leg.
—Maverick Li, Men's Health, 22 Aug. 2023
Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is a film rife with larger-than-life, extremely pink, across-the-board tremendous fashion, largely courtesy of costume designer Jacqueline Durran (who has powerfully informed the popularity of Barbiecore).
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 27 July 2023
That’s only partly courtesy of CL-20 – the Chinese have also developed technology to make propellants burn more efficiently and have built larger missiles than U.S. forces can bring to the fight by air or sea.
—Jeremy Bogaisky, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2023
Lopez even reintroduced the history-making gown in 2019, closing out the Italian brand's show during Milan Fashion Week in the dress, which was taken to new heights courtesy of a unitard silhouette and flowing train.
—Michelle Lee, Peoplemag, 13 Apr. 2023
The gifts were courtesy of Jason Heyward, the 13-year veteran entering his first season in the Dodgers outfield.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2023
Three of the Colonials goals were courtesy of rebounds, firing pucks on net and capitalizing on solid positioning out front to pounce upon bouncing pucks off the far-pad.
—Cam Kerry, BostonGlobe.com, 11 Mar. 2023
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Noun
Trending What follows is one undercooked feast of gruesome kills, final-girl pursuits, a few mild digs at capitalism, red herrings, blood-red interior decorating courtesy of decapitations, the occasional nod to that trailer, and a lot of dead air.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 17 Nov. 2023
The hotel staff wears posh uniforms courtesy of Arzu Kaprol, a designer who has a boutique in the nearby Paket Postanesi, a historic post office turned chic shopping mall.
—Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 16 Nov. 2023
Photo credits: Portraits courtesy of Tara Fisher for Africana, Kelly Marshall, Bob Hodson, Evan Sung.
—Kristin Braswell, Essence, 16 Nov. 2023
Privet, nandina, Bradford pear, porcelain berry and Asian bittersweet are all invasive berried plants that have spread courtesy of bird dispersal.
—Tovah Martin, Washington Post, 16 Nov. 2023
Spotlight Art work courtesy Fundación Almine y Bernard Ruiz-Picasso; Photograph by Hugard & Vanoverschelde
Art
The fiftieth anniversary of Pablo Picasso’s death has inspired plenty of exhibitions that go big or go deep.
—Condé Nast, The New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2023
Photo: Francois Duhamel / courtesy of Netflix Unlike Moore, who has now worked on five features with the director, May December marks Portman’s first collaboration with Haynes.
—Elaina Patton, Vogue, 16 Nov. 2023
Here’s the young, hot, and not-yet-corrupted version of the future president, courtesy of Billy the Kid’s Tom Blyth.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 16 Nov. 2023
Check out the numbers here, courtesy of CalMatters’ Jeremia Kimelman.
—Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 14 Nov. 2023
Adjective
Today, the 911 GT3 RS can generate 1,895 lbs (860 kg) of downforce at 285 km/h, with a low-downforce setting for lower speeds courtesy of active front and rear wing elements.
—Jonathan M. Gitlin, Ars Technica, 16 Oct. 2023
The jaw-dropping transformation comes courtesy stylist Dimitris Giannetos, who regularly works with Fox and a slate of stars like Joey King, Ciara and Gigi Hadid.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 6 Sep. 2023
Our testing also shows that the Tellis in fact works with most body types courtesy of their tailored shape and tailored leg.
—Maverick Li, Men's Health, 22 Aug. 2023
Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is a film rife with larger-than-life, extremely pink, across-the-board tremendous fashion, largely courtesy of costume designer Jacqueline Durran (who has powerfully informed the popularity of Barbiecore).
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 27 July 2023
That’s only partly courtesy of CL-20 – the Chinese have also developed technology to make propellants burn more efficiently and have built larger missiles than U.S. forces can bring to the fight by air or sea.
—Jeremy Bogaisky, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2023
Lopez even reintroduced the history-making gown in 2019, closing out the Italian brand's show during Milan Fashion Week in the dress, which was taken to new heights courtesy of a unitard silhouette and flowing train.
—Michelle Lee, Peoplemag, 13 Apr. 2023
The gifts were courtesy of Jason Heyward, the 13-year veteran entering his first season in the Dodgers outfield.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2023
Three of the Colonials goals were courtesy of rebounds, firing pucks on net and capitalizing on solid positioning out front to pounce upon bouncing pucks off the far-pad.
—Cam Kerry, BostonGlobe.com, 11 Mar. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'courtesy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Phrases Containing courtesy
Dictionary Entries Near courtesy
Cite this Entry
“Courtesy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/courtesy. Accessed 7 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition
courtesy
noun
cour·te·sy
ˈkərt-ə-sē
plural courtesies
1
: courtly politeness
2
: a favor courteously performed
3
: a favor as distinguished from a right
a title by courtesy only
More from Merriam-Webster on courtesy
Nglish: Translation of courtesy for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of courtesy for Arabic Speakers
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