1
as in services
an act of kind assistance
did me the courtesy of loaning me his jacket
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in gestures
an act or utterance that is a customary show of good manners
the greeting "How are you?" is often intended as no more than a courtesy
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of courtesies
With both courtesies and catastrophes refusing to conform, the canton’s school board, publishers, and clergy were forced to produce multiple editions of primers, textbooks, and catechisms; sometimes five parallel print runs were needed for a population the size of a town.
—
Simon Akam, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
Leonora measures out her days in courtesies and slights, the former dominating the beginning of the book, the latter rapidly gaining ground.
—Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2025
Simon Akam, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
Leonora measures out her days in courtesies and slights, the former dominating the beginning of the book, the latter rapidly gaining ground.
—Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for courtesies
Noun
-
The announcement stoked fears of disruptions to software companies that provide data and services to the legal industry.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
3 Feb. 2026
-
Tools like electronic visit verification and unique caregiver identifiers help confirm when and where care is delivered, reducing the risk of duplicate payments and ensuring Medicaid dollars are tied to real services.—
Miki Kapoor,
New York Daily News,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
But Crockett puts equal value on the small gestures.—
Tribune News Service,
Baltimore Sun,
3 Feb. 2026
-
The strained awkwardness of Adelina and Alban’s gestures of generosity underscore the class disparity between the city dwellers and their relatives.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
As is taking away china privileges from even one-time offenders.—
Judith Martin,
Sun Sentinel,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Another 200,000 pages were withheld over legal privileges.—
Luke Barr,
ABC News,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
This, at the very least, offered Noem the chance to show proof of life, as well as to grovel her way back into the president’s good graces.—
Mark Leibovich,
The Atlantic,
31 Jan. 2026
-
The president himself scolded a New York Times reporter for asking about the cost and whether Amazon was seeking to get in his good graces.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Trust your ability to attract money to you or, perhaps, favors and practical support will come your way.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
23 Jan. 2026
-
For calling in all the favors to turn out all the biggest musicians and entertainers to contribute to making his movie better?—
Elizabeth Rosner,
PEOPLE,
20 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Courtesies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/courtesies. Accessed 9 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
