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
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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
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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
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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
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as in humiliating
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as in humiliation
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as in discrediting
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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of humble
Literary Hub, 28 May 2026
Over a half-century later, that humble staging of the Godspell musical paved the way for Martin, a Tony Award-winning stage actress for My Favorite Year and Pippin.
—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 28 May 2026
Cam'ron Hardy, Chicago Tribune, 23 May 2026
Especially since the most anguishing and arduous steps often are acknowledging the issue and humbling oneself to reach out.
—Kansas City Star, 22 May 2026
Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Jan. 2026
Those listeners are the ones who are our backbone, which is very humbling.
—Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 17 Oct. 2025
Orlando Sentinel, The Orlando Sentinel, 24 Apr. 2026
The humbling adjustment looked like a recognition that the company had come up short in a bruising contest of advertising with competitors including McDonald’s and Wendy’s that newswriters dubbed the Burger Wars.
—Steve Patterson, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026
Ann Kirschner, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
Especially since the most anguishing and arduous steps often are acknowledging the issue and humbling oneself to reach out.
—Kansas City Star, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for humble
Adjective
Born to a humble family in the twilight years of the shogunate, Higuchi Natsuko (as she was born) was the fourth child and second daughter of a man with scholarly inclinations, who as a farmer had come to the capital to seek both fortune and rank.
—Literary Hub, 28 May 2026
Over a half-century later, that humble staging of the Godspell musical paved the way for Martin, a Tony Award-winning stage actress for My Favorite Year and Pippin.
—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 28 May 2026
Verb
The achievement was both an honor and humbling for him, Lehman said.
—Cam'ron Hardy, Chicago Tribune, 23 May 2026
Especially since the most anguishing and arduous steps often are acknowledging the issue and humbling oneself to reach out.
—Kansas City Star, 22 May 2026
Adjective
Being on an island starving is very humbling.
—Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Jan. 2026
Those listeners are the ones who are our backbone, which is very humbling.
—Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
The humbling end to a mercifully brief career should be a warning to anyone else who might try to get elected by brazenly flouting the disclosure laws.
—Orlando Sentinel, The Orlando Sentinel, 24 Apr. 2026
The humbling adjustment looked like a recognition that the company had come up short in a bruising contest of advertising with competitors including McDonald’s and Wendy’s that newswriters dubbed the Burger Wars.
—Steve Patterson, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026
Verb
The answers will be instructive, sometimes humbling, and occasionally brilliant.
—Ann Kirschner, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
Especially since the most anguishing and arduous steps often are acknowledging the issue and humbling oneself to reach out.
—Kansas City Star, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for humble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for humble
Adjective
-
Their 1-1 draw instead brought a meek defence of their Premier League title to an end.—
Luke Bosher,
New York Times,
24 May 2026
-
Gone was the meek servant child, replaced by a confident woman who remained composed during aggressive cross-examination.—
Yudhijit Bhattacharjee,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
Adjective
-
The rulings do not clear the former paramedics of wrongdoing but return the cases to the lower court for a possible retrial.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
5 June 2026
-
The tech contagion spread to stocks in Asia, dragging key indexes lower.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
5 June 2026
Adjective
-
That this man’s-man tough guy becomes utterly servile in the presence of a bunch of slack-casual bazillionaires is the cherry on top of the fascist sundae.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Julia was the first weekly TV series that starred a Black woman in a role that wasn't servile.—
Starr Rocque,
PEOPLE,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Linda Hyde, a Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards member since 2014, boarded her Southwest flight on May 21 at Miami International Airport humiliated and angry.—
Ella Moore
Updated May 29,
Miami Herald,
29 May 2026
-
Strength is not the capacity to humiliate someone with less power.—
Marc Brackett,
Hartford Courant,
27 May 2026
Adjective
-
The nadir came in 2015 with a humiliating 4-1 defeat by rivals the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as they were eliminated in the group stage.—
Jay Harris,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
-
In 2008, after the Lebanese government attempted to shut down Hezbollah’s telecommunications network and remove an airport-security chief seen as close to the group, Hezbollah fighters seized parts of Beirut within hours, forcing a humiliating climbdown.—
Euan Ward,
New Yorker,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
Teenagers today are consuming endless streams of violent content, ideological rage, conspiracy theories, humiliation culture and social isolation through digital platforms that reward outrage and emotional instability.—
Editorial,
Boston Herald,
1 June 2026
-
Whatever pleasure could be had in Nate’s comeuppance was undone by his humiliation dragging out for hours before being put out of his misery; Cassie’s next act as a hype-house doyenne is only handwaved at, and any responsibility for Nate’s unpaid debts handwaved entirely.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
1 June 2026
Verb
-
Orbán’s rule was marked by a sprawling media ecosystem, which for years served as a loyal mouthpiece for his Fidesz party while discrediting, defaming and intimidating his opponents.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
18 May 2026
-
My fear is that poor implementation and, above all, a failure to take accountability seriously will end up discrediting good ideas.—
Rachel Canter,
The Atlantic,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Cal Fire still holds a modest annual budget for wildfire mitigation work.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
30 May 2026
-
Frankly, his ambitions are modest, and this sits well with us.—
Mercury News Editorial Board,
Mercury News,
29 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Humble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/humble. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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