demure

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She actually envied the simplicity of Lucy Morris, for whom she delighted to find evil names, calling her demure, a prig, a sly puss, and so on.

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Definitions (8)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. adjective Modest and reserved in manner or behavior.
  2. adjective Affectedly shy, modest, or reserved. See Synonyms at shy1.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (3)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (2)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (1)

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This word has been looked up 249 times.

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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

prim ·  downcast ·  sedate ·  modest ·  girlish ·  sober ·  shy ·  meek ·  apologetic ·  placid ·  respectful ·  sly
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (3)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English, probably from Anglo-Norman (influenced by Old French mur, meur, mature, serious), past participle of demurer, to delay, wait; see demur.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (2)

  1. from Middle English demure, from Old French demurs, for de bounes murs (buens murs, boines mours), literally of good manners (in formation like debonair, q. v.): de, from Latin de, of; bon, from Latin bonus, good; murs, mors, mours, masculine, feminine, French mœurs, feminine, manners, from Latin mores, manners: see moral.
  2. from demure, adjective
 

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/dəˈmjur/
by American Heritage

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