Synonyms of humble

humble 1 of 2

adjective

ˈhəm-bəl 

1

as in meek

not having or showing any feelings of superiority, self-assertiveness, or showiness

a medical scientist who remained remarkably humble even after winning the Nobel Prize

even though she'd been proven wrong, her attitude was still far from humble

Synonyms & Similar Words

• meek
• modest
• unassuming
• unaffected
• lowly
• timid
• down-to-earth
• unpretentious
• naive
• demure
• shy
• simple
• quiet
• passive
• deferential
• subdued
• submissive
• unassertive
• acquiescent
• compliant
• resigned
• unaggressive
• plain
• ingenuous
• bashful
• reserved
• unobtrusive
• diffident
• yielding
• sheepish
• shrinking
• retiring
• introverted
• mousy
• self-effacing
• cowering
• cringing
• self-deprecating
• self-deprecatory
• aw-shucks
• overmodest

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• arrogant
• haughty
• superior
• pretentious
• pompous
• conceited
• presumptuous
• supercilious
• imperious
• bumptious
• aggressive
• egotistic
• impudent
• assertive
• high-and-mighty
• confident
• uppity
• bold
• peremptory
• audacious
• cheeky
• lordly
• uppish
• forward
• huffy
• saucy
• brash
• cocky
• impertinent
• highfalutin
• high-handed
• brassy
• high-hat
• overweening
• smug
• chesty
• presuming
• egocentric
• overconfident
• prideful
• narcissistic
• hubristic
• cocksure
• boastful
• vain
• egoistic
• dominant
• self-assertive
• hoity-toity
• bombastic
• huffish
• vainglorious
• toplofty
• self-asserting
• condescending
• fastuous
• disdainful
• domineering
• self-confident
• patronizing
• showy
• swaggering
• flamboyant
• overbearing
• magisterial
• self-centered
• ostentatious
• dominating
• self-important
• self-complacent
• self-contented
• self-satisfied
• self-conceited
• outgoing
• stuck-up
• uninhibited
• self-congratulatory
• self-engrossed
• self-obsessed
• braggy
• self-affected
• self-pleased
• immodest
• swelled-headed
• unreserved
• extroverted
• pontificating

2

as in low

belonging to the class of people of low social or economic rank

a humble peasant girl who claimed she was chosen by God to restore the French king to his throne

Synonyms & Similar Words

• low
• lowly
• plebeian
• ignoble
• proletarian
• unwashed
• lower-class
• common
• poor
• vulgar
• inferior
• low-life
• lumpen
• mean
• lowborn
• prole
• simple
• middle-class
• baseborn
• bourgeois
• plain
• working-class
• déclassé
• downscale
• down-market

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• gentle
• noble
• great
• lofty
• high
• aristocratic
• grand
• genteel
• patrician
• upper-class
• prominent
• upper-crust
• illustrious
• eminent
• notable
• highborn
• blue-blooded
• highbred
• wellborn

3

as in servile

showing, expressing, or offered in a spirit of humility or unseemly submissiveness

please accept my humble thanks for this unexpected favor

Synonyms & Similar Words

• meek
• servile
• abject
• menial
• base
• slavish
• modest
• unassuming
• sheepish
• lowly
• hangdog
• unpretentious
• retiring
• lamblike
• sycophantic
• demure
• fawning
• sycophant
• toadyish

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• arrogant
• haughty
• superior
• supercilious
• imperious
• uppity
• lordly
• high-handed

humble

2 of 2

verb

ˈhəm-bəl 

as in to humiliate

to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes

Philip was utterly humbled by a crushing defeat in the first round of the state chess tournament

Synonyms & Similar Words

• humiliate
• discredit
• embarrass
• shame
• disgrace
• insult
• confuse
• demean
• take down
• dishonor
• degrade
• abase
• rattle
• criticize
• chasten
• cheapen
• debase
• lower
• smirch
• sink
• foul
• diminish
• ridicule
• disparage
• mortify
• minimize
• detract
• confound
• belittle
• faze
• affront
• discount
• disconcert
• write off
• condemn
• discountenance
• malign
• nonplus
• slander
• decry
• abash
• fluster
• depreciate
• cry down
• damn
• put down
• discomfit
• libel
• defame
• castigate
• defile
• bad-mouth
• denounce
• censure
• reprobate
• execrate
• reprehend

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• honor
• exalt
• praise
• elevate
• commend
• salute
• congratulate
• applaud
• recognize
• boast
• compliment
• cheer
• celebrate
• acknowledge
• aggrandize
• laud
• decorate
• deify
• canonize
• extol
• acclaim
• hail
• eulogize
• cite
• tout
• fete
• highlight
• spotlight
• dignify
• glorify
• ennoble
• play up
• promote
• lift
• raise
• uplift
• magnify
• advance
• enthrone
• enshrine
• boost
• upgrade
• idealize
• romanticize
• ensky

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of humble

Adjective

To remember Lindsey Graham, Margaret, is honestly to remember his very humble beginnings. — CBS News, 12 July 2026

Yet his truest education came from the palace sweepers—the humble monk-servants who raised him. — Charlie Campbell, Time, 9 July 2026

Verb

That’s why the Miami Heat’s circle of decision-makers needs to humble itself and shoot its best shot at James. — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 29 June 2026

Paraguay were humbled by the United States in the tournament opener but a crucial victory over Turkey helped turn their prospects around. — Charlie Scott, New York Times, 28 June 2026