1
as in services
an act of kind assistance
did me the courtesy of loaning me his jacket
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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
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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
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Every January, companies from around the world gather to flaunt new technologies, products and services.—
Lisa Eadicicco,
CNN Money,
10 Jan. 2026
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Instead, the program will change where the sales tax dollars go — redirecting dollars that would have otherwise been added to the state’s general fund to pay for highways, schools and other services to pay off the project’s debt and retire the bonds.—
Taylor O'Connor,
Kansas City Star,
10 Jan. 2026
Noun
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These touching gestures reminded me that books were restorative, bringers of joy as well as knowledge.—
Kenneth Turan,
The Atlantic,
7 Jan. 2026
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By integrating vision, audio, and language, IntEngine enables Nylo to coordinate speech, facial expressions, and gestures in real time.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Jan. 2026
Noun
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People convicted of crimes now enter the state prison at level 2 and must wait at least eight months to move to level 4, which allows for the most privileges.—
Ashlynd Baecht,
The Frontier,
6 Jan. 2026
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In October, King Charles stripped his younger brother Prince Andrew of all royal titles and privileges, leaving him a commoner known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.—
Rachel Burchfield,
InStyle,
6 Jan. 2026
Noun
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His daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, have remained in the Windsor dynasty's good graces following Andrew's banishment.—
Hannah Malach,
InStyle,
29 Dec. 2025
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But with Zelensky now in the good graces of the White House after an explosive meeting at the White House in February, the meeting on Sunday will send a message to Moscow.—
Mabinty Quarshie,
The Washington Examiner,
28 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Jones didn't do Eberflus any favors by trading star pass rusher Micah Parsons a week before the season started.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
7 Jan. 2026
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Owner and general manager Jerry Jones didn’t do Eberflus any favors by trading star pass rusher Micah Parsons a week before the season started.—
Schuyler Dixon,
Chicago Tribune,
6 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Courtesies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/courtesies. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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