请输入您要查询的英文单词:

 

单词 polite
释义

politeadj.n.

Brit. /pəˈlʌɪt/, U.S. /pəˈlaɪt/
Forms: Middle English polit, Middle English pollyte, Middle English polyt, 1500s–1600s polyte, 1500s– polite; Scottish pre-1700 poleit, pre-1700 polit, pre-1700 polyt, pre-1700 polyte, pre-1700 1700s– polite; also Irish English (northern) 1900s– plite.
Origin: A borrowing from Latin. Etymon: Latin polītus.
Etymology: < classical Latin polītus, past participle of polīre to smooth, to polish (see polish v.), also as adjective in figurative senses (of people, their manners, or their appearance, or of writings or activities) polished, elegant, accomplished, refined, cultivated, courteous. Compare Old French, Middle French, French poli smooth, shiny (c1160), (of words) careful, well-chosen (late 12th cent.), (of words) cultured (1580), (of a people or country) civilized (1681), (of a person) courteous, well-mannered (1694), Old Occitan polit (of a word in a poem) well-chosen (c1160), smooth, shiny (13th cent.), Catalan polit (14th cent.), Spanish pulido polished (literally and figuratively), refined (late 13th cent.), Italian polito smooth, shiny, (of writing or speech) well-chosen, polished, refined (a1327).Attested earlier as a surname: Robertus Polyte (1263), William Polyt (1313). N.E.D. (1907) gives the pronunciation as (poləi·t) /pə(ʊ)ˈlaɪt/.
A. adj.
1.
a. Smoothed, polished, burnished. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > flatness or levelness > smoothness > [adjective] > smooth and polished or glossy
slighta1300
politea1398
well-burnishedc1400
well-polished1485
snod?a1500
sleeked1513
sneith1513
snog1513
sleek1589
enamelled1600
polished1649
slid1719
waxen1722
glazy1724
smolt1837
patent leather1904
smarmy1909
ciré1921
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > materials having undergone process > [adjective] > smoothed or polished
polisheda1382
politea1398
burnishedc1400
rubbed?c1425
levigated1578
expolite1592
smoothened1818
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 197v Berill is..yliche in grene colour to Smaragde but it is wiþ palenesse and polit.
c1429 Mirour Mans Saluacioune (1986) l. 1499 (MED) The Arche withinne & without was hiled with golde polyt.
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) x. l. 388 Throu polyt platis with poyntis persyt thair.
1531 T. Elyot Bk. named Gouernour iii. xxii. sig. giiiv The brightnes of the science appereth polite and clere.
1669 W. Simpson Hydrologia Chymica 74 Many periapta become effectual by being such polite bodies.
1676 J. Evelyn Philos. Disc. Earth 35 Potters-Earth..became like Sand..exceeding polite and smooth.
1678 R. Cudworth True Intellect. Syst. Universe i. v. 731 Polite Bodies, as Looking-Glasses.
a1727 I. Newton Opticks (1730) iii. i. 329 It cleaves with a glossy polite Surface.
1737 W. Whiston tr. Josephus Antiq. Jews xv. ix, in tr. Josephus Genuine Wks. 498 Edifices..made of the politest stone.
1772 B. Martin Typographia Naturalis 6 There is a secret Quality in some Leaves of a close and solid texture, and even a fine polite surface, which will cause the Glue to adhere.
b. Clean; neat, orderly. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > [adjective] > clean and tidy
smug1598
polite1602
tidy1706
tosh1776
tidy-looking1825
speck and span1840
spick and span1846
toshy1856
spick1882
the world > relative properties > order > [adjective] > tidy
queemc1450
trig1513
trimc1521
neat1594
polite1602
terse1602
unlittered1612
ship-shape1644
snod1717
tight1720
redd1753
(as) neat (also clean) as a (new) pin1769
mack1825
tidy1828
slick1833
ship-shapely1843
trimly1858
taut1870
1602 B. Jonson Poetaster iii. i. sig. D3 I am enamord of this streete now..tis so polite, and terse. View more context for this quotation
1673 J. Ray Observ. Journey Low-countries 427 At Suitz..the people..keep their houses neat and cleanly, and withal very polite and in good repair.
a1701 H. Maundrell Journey Aleppo to Jerusalem (1703) 76 To preserve these Chambers of the dead polite and clean.
2.
a. Of language, the arts, or other intellectual pursuits: refined, elegant, scholarly; exhibiting good or restrained taste.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > good taste > refinement > [adjective]
polisheda1382
dainteousc1386
polite?a1500
delicatea1533
courtly1535
civil1551
court-like1552
well-refined1575
nice1588
perpolite1592
politic1596
soft1599
terse1628
refine1646
refined1650
elegant1652
genteel1678
chastea1797
spirituala1806
aesthetic1844
nicey1859
raffiné1865
nuttish1869
too-tooa1884
sophisticated1895
lavender1928
society > leisure > the arts > the arts in general > [adjective] > qualities of works generally
wateryc1230
polite?a1500
meagre1539
over-laboured1579
bald1589
spiritless1592
light1597
meretricious1633
standing1661
effectual1662
airy1664
severe1665
correct1676
enervatea1704
free1728
classic1743
academic1752
academical1752
chaste1753
nerveless1763
epic1769
crude1786
effective1790
creative1791
soulless1794
mannered1796
manneristical1830
manneristic1837
subjective1840
inartisticala1849
abstract1857
inartistic1859
literary1900
period1905
atmospheric1908
dateless1908
atmosphered1920
non-naturalistic1925
self-indulgent1926
free-styled1933
soft-centred1935
freestyle1938
pseudish1938
decadent1942
post-human1944
kitschy1946
faux-naïf1958
spare1965
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > elegance > [adjective] > refined or cultured
polite?a1500
fileda1533
facetious1542
exquisited1581
refined1582
smooth1589
perpolite1592
terse1628
washed1628
refine1646
parliamentary1789
literary1793
urbane1800
a1500 R. Henryson in tr. Æsop Fables Prol. l. 3 in Poems (1981) 3 Polite termes of sweit rethore Richt plesand ar vnto the eir of man.
1531 T. Elyot Bk. named Gouernour i. v. sig. Cijv That they speke none englisshe but that, whiche is cleane, polite, perfectly, and articulately pronounced.
?1553 (c1501) G. Douglas Palice of Honour (London) 836 in Shorter Poems (2003) 58 Ȝone is..the court rethoricall, Of polit termys.
1612 J. Selden in M. Drayton Poly-olbion vi. Illustr. 98 That polite Poem (in whose composition Apollo seemes to haue giuen personall aide).
1656 Vindic. Jud. in Phenix (1708) No. 24. 392 Your Worship cannot expect either prolix or polite discourses upon so sad a subject; for who can be ambitious in his own calamity?
1699 R. Bentley Diss. Epist. Phalaris (new ed.) Pref. p. xlix All the Lovers of Polite Learning..give me thanks.
1726 C. D'Anvers Craftsman (1727) i. 4 My natural inclination to the politer arts.
1745 E. Haywood Female Spectator II. xii. 360 Dancing, Musick, or any of the politer accomplishments, were his Aversion.
1786 J. Bonnycastle Introd. Astron. 12 One of the most useful branches of a polite..education.
1816 L. Murray Eng. Gram. Illustr. (ed. 3) I. ii. vi. 174 Every polite tongue has its own rules.
1891 Speaker 2 May 532/1 In it metaphysics have again condescended to speak the language of polite letters.
1952 A. Wilson Hemlock & After i. v. 98 He seemed to regard any literary enterprise as a sort of polite fiction for a brothel.
1977 V. S. Pritchett Gentle Barbarian i. 3 Ivan [Turgenev]'s mother, Varvara Petrovna, noted in French, the polite language of her class, that the new baby was twenty-one inches long.
2003 Independent on Sunday (Nexis) 24 Aug. 16 He [sc. Smollett] spent the next quarter century scratching out a subsistence living on the margins of polite literature, ruining his health along the way.
b. Of a person, social group, etc.: refined; cultured, cultivated; (also) well-regulated. Now chiefly in polite society, circles, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > good taste > refinement > [adjective] > specifically of persons
refined1598
polite1601
inlanda1616
researched1636
spirituel1673
elegant1691
kid-gloved1848
kid glove1856
fine-drawn1876
rose water1883
sophisticated1895
subtle1904
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > branch of knowledge > humanistic studies > [adjective] > cultured
polite1601
improved1617
cultivated1645
well-cultured1760
cultured1777
high-minded1827
highbrow1908
kulturny1955
1601 B. Jonson Fountaine of Selfe-love iv. iii. sig. G4 How he do's all to be qualifie her!..as if there were not others in place, as..Polite, as she. View more context for this quotation
1629 J. Wadsworth Eng. Spanish Pilgrime viii. 91 One of the politest wits in the Kingdome for the Law.
a1664 K. Philips To Abp. of Canterbury in Poems (1667) 166 Majestick sweetness, temper'd and refin'd, In a Polite, and comprehensive Mind.
1691 J. Hartcliffe Treat. Virtues 7 The more polite..sort of Men place their Felicity in Honours.
1704 J. Swift Tale of Tub v. 120 It is become the Fashion and Humor most applauded among the first Authors of this Polite and Learned Age.
1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 39. ¶2 In all the polite Nations of the World, this part of the Drama has met with Publick Encouragement.
1755 Connoisseur (1756) No. 84. 506 This roughness, which clings to the seaman's behaviour like tar to his trowsers, makes him unfit for all civil and polite society.
1772 W. Jones Poems 197 A very polite scholar, who has lately translated sixteen Odes of Hafez.
1803 in A. Candler Poet. Attempts 16 Several of her Poems having been read and approved, in polite and literary circles.
1827 W. Scott Surgeon's Daughter in Chron. Canongate 1st Ser. II. ii. 33 He..was unwilling to subject himself to that which was exacted in polite society.
1891 G. B. Shaw Quintessence of Ibsenism iv. 102 Rebecca, then a mere adventuress fighting for a foothold in polite society.
1894 C. H. H. Parry Stud. Great Composers: Beethoven 166 His behaviour was not of the kind affected by polite Viennese.
1902 W. James Varieties Relig. Experience viii. 186 The cupidities, complications, and cruelties of our polite civilization are profoundly unsatisfying.
1938 P. Kavanagh Green Fool xvi. 159 She talked like one who had lived a while in society houses, & this was true. She was far too polite for a rank kitchen.
1940 John o' London's Weekly 3 May 149/3 Edinburgh being very ‘refained’, the word [sc. keelie] is seldom used in the more polite society.
2004 Daily Tel. (Sydney) (Nexis) 20 Sept. 5 No one he was berating knew what he was on about. In polite circles, this is called being ‘unpredictable’.
c. Courteous, behaving in a manner that is respectful or considerate of others; well-mannered.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > courtesy > [adjective]
metheOE
hendc1225
debonairc1230
hendya1250
courteousc1275
hendlyc1275
bonairc1300
quaintc1300
sweetc1330
graciousa1375
meetha1400
debonary1402
debonariousc1485
humanec1500
civil1565
genty1660
discreet1739
polite1751
politeful1832
the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > [adjective] > well-mannered > polished or refined
well-polished1485
civil?1538
politic1596
cult1598
refined1598
inlanda1616
facete1616
urbane1623
terse1628
gentilitat1632
polite1751
politeful1832
1751 E. Justice Amelia 193 I am much concern'd that the Gentleman should make you pay Ten Shillings for that trifling Present I sent you, but that Family is not capable of a polite Action.
1772 H. Mackenzie Man of World (1823) ii. xx. 492 The French are the politest enemies in the world.
1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall II. xix. 151 Narses..was endowed with the most polite and amiable manners.
1807 G. Crabbe Parish Reg. iii, in Poems 128 To them, to all, he was polite and free.
1831 J. Sinclair Corr. II. 426 He sent me the following polite acknowledgment of his having received the work.
1883 Manch. Guard. 22 Oct. 5/5 Lord Dufferin obtains..polite promises, but is not in a position to get anything more.
1904 Collier's 7 May 9/2 The raw fish was a novelty which even the bravest military attaché and the politest correspondent dared not attempt.
1946 A. Christie Hollow xix. 168 ‘Really?’ There was polite disbelief in the inspector's tone.
1990 M. Wesley Sensible Life (BNC) 175 I must do the polite thing..and write to Flora's mother.
B. n.
1. With plural agreement. With the. Refined or cultured people as a class. Cf. A. 2b.
ΚΠ
1711 E. Ward Life Don Quixote v. xxii. 422 His Feats of Arms, Amours, and Worth, Are well and artfully set forth, As the Polite and Learn'd may see In the same ancient History.
1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones V. xiii. i. 6 Lastly, come Experience long conversant with the Wise, the Good, the Learned, and the Polite . View more context for this quotation
1776 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. xv. 484 When Christianity was introduced among the rich and the polite.
1802 J. Walker Crit. Pronouncing Dict. (ed. 3) at Mischievous In language, as in many other cases, it is safer to be wrong with the polite than right with the vulgar.
1840 T. B. Macaulay Ranke's Hist. in Ess. (1851) II. 142 Whatever the polite and learned may think.
a1894 R. L. Stevenson In South Seas (1896) i. xiii. 128 Such being the attitude of the intelligent and the polite.
1933 Times 13 Jan. 13/4 It is to be feared that Horace has lost ground, though within living memory he was constantly quoted in senates and was a passport among the polite throughout Europe.
1998 Australian (Nexis) 21 Nov. r12 He marries exquisite Eve Frame.., becoming a powerful misfit among the polite, and viperish.
2. colloquial. to do the polite (with thing understood): to perform a courteous action, to behave politely. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > courtesy > be courteous [verb (intransitive)]
to do the polite1826
to do the civil1838
1826 J. S. in P. G. Patmore Rejected Articles 157 I hate and detest his awkward attempts at what Ned calls ‘doing the polite’.
1856 G. J. Whyte-Melville Kate Coventry iii John ‘doing the polite’, and laughing as he..introduced ‘Captain Lovell’ and ‘Miss Coventry’.
1915 E. Fenwick Diary 31 July (1981) 61 We had to go and do the polite in the Doctor's house.
1935 G. Greene Eng. made Me iv. 205 They are leaving at the end of the week. I've got to do the polite.
1954 A. Thirkell What did it Mean? 253 I suppose I must go and do the polite with the Palace.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2006; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

politev.

Forms: see polite adj.
Origin: Either (i) formed within English, by conversion. Or (ii) a borrowing from Latin. Etymons: polite adj.; Latin polīt-, polīre.
Etymology: Either < polite adj., or < classical Latin polīt-, past participial stem of polīre to polish (see polish v.). Compare also polish v.
Obsolete.
transitive. To polish or refine; to clear up.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > improvement > [verb (transitive)] > purify or refine
slick1340
filec1400
polishc1400
burnish1526
polite1535
extirpate1548
purify1548
soften1579
purgea1582
refine1592
mellow1593
civilize1596
rarefy1600
incivilize1603
sublimate1624
alembicate1627
chastise1627
sublime1631
calcine1635
gentilize1635
ennoble1636
subtilize1638
deconcoct1655
sublimizea1729
smooth1762
absterge1817
decrassify1855
sandpaper1890
1535 Bp. S. Gardiner Let. 26 Sept. (1933) 68 I had entended to have polyted and cleansed it.
1564 T. Becon New Catech. in Catech. & Other Pieces (1844) 350 The tongue may not so be filed that the mind be defiled, nor the speech so polited that the heart be polluted.
a1676 M. Hale De Successionibus (1699) 50 There was some incertainty in the business of Descents, or Hereditary Successions, though it was much better polited than formerly.
1691 J. Dunton tr. Abbot de Choissy in Young Student's Lib. 420/2 He hath extended our Frontiers; he hath Raised us, Polited, and if I may say it, Amplified our Wit by the Establishment of the Academy.
1701 J. Ray Wisdom of God (ed. 3) i. 108 Exercises..which polite Mens Spirits.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2020).
<
adj.n.a1398v.1535
随便看

 

英语词典包含1132095条英英释义在线翻译词条,基本涵盖了全部常用单词的英英翻译及用法,是英语学习的有利工具。

 

Copyright © 2004-2022 Newdu.com All Rights Reserved
更新时间:2025/3/21 13:51:46