as in humble
showing, expressing, or offered in a spirit of humility or unseemly submissiveness
every command was obeyed in the menial manner of someone who seemed grateful just to be in the presence of a celebrity
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in servant
a person hired to perform household or personal services
immigrants to that country faced fierce prejudice and could expect to find work only as menials
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of menial
Charles Onyango-Obbo, semafor.com, 12 Jan. 2026
His father, a professional baker, would sometimes ask him to do menial tasks in the kitchen.
—Dawn Chan, New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2025
Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2023
An oceanographer served as winemaker, while Mr. Maltese was the group organizer and cellar rat, a wine-industry term for those performing menial but essential tasks like topping off barrels.
—Eric Asimov, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for menial
Adjective
As a result, young people have become an export commodity; over 317,000 Ugandans now labor in the Gulf, one of Africa’s highest rates of menial migration.
—Charles Onyango-Obbo, semafor.com, 12 Jan. 2026
His father, a professional baker, would sometimes ask him to do menial tasks in the kitchen.
—Dawn Chan, New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2025
Noun
Outside the windowless offices, the anthropocene was over—somehow these hapless menials had missed its bang or its whimper—and the pre-human food chain was busy reasserting itself.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2023
An oceanographer served as winemaker, while Mr. Maltese was the group organizer and cellar rat, a wine-industry term for those performing menial but essential tasks like topping off barrels.
—Eric Asimov, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for menial
Recent Examples of Synonyms for menial
Adjective
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Kayla is a humble and gracious student who leads with quiet strength and a genuine love for dance.—
Heide Janssen,
Oc Register,
15 Mar. 2026
-
After pulling off another iconic play Saturday, Reaves had a more humble message.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
15 Mar. 2026
Noun
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According to the Michigan Attorney General's office, 64-year-old Kellie Lauwers, of Yale, is charged with one count of embezzlement by an agent or servant of $20,000 or more but less than $50,000 and one count of using a computer to commit a crime.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
10 Mar. 2026
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Inside the house, the head servant and seamstress sabotaged him to advance her own child; in the fields, overseers beat him for the slightest offense.—
Regina E. Mason,
The Atlantic,
7 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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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
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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
Adjective
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Some of the ire contributing to the unedifying scenes at full-time owed to just how meek Villa had been against the Premier League’s bottom team.—
Jacob Tanswell,
New York Times,
3 Mar. 2026
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At the film’s center is Seyo Kim (Chen Emilie Yan), a meek state lawyer looking to make a difference, but who accepts, with begrudging sighs, her department’s 80% rate of dropping hate crime prosecutions as just another part of the job.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Menial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/menial. Accessed 17 Mar. 2026.
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