You searched for: “civilized
civilize (verb), civilizes; civilized; civilizing
1. To teach someone, or a group of people, to behave in a way that is more gentle and polite: Ingrid's parents hoped that a boarding school might help civilize her so she wouldn't be so hateful.
2. To make more concerned, fair, and reasonable: Dr. Anderson is a new doctor who has been civilizing the treatment of patients with mental illnesses.
3. To guide or to help others to have a more highly organized and more modern way of living: The missionaries were convinced that it was their responsibility to civilize the natives in the African jungles so they could improve their conditions of existence.
This entry is located in the following units: civi-, civ-, cit- (page 2) -ize (page 3)
civilized (adjective), more civilized, most civilized
1. Characterized by well-organized laws and rules about how people interact with each other: The more civilized societies usually respond to criminal acts with fairness and justice.
2. A reference to being reasonable, polite, and respectful: Jack and Jill were having a civilized conversation about whether to watch a certain TV program or maybe the other one.
3. Relating to being comfortable and pleasant: Jennifer told her husband that with her new job, she would be able to start the next days with a more civilized hour which would not be as early in the morning as it had been in the past.
4. Showing concern for what is correct according to general social rules: Believe it or not, but there are historians who claim that there were people in the past who lived in a more civilized way because they were focused on what they believed was proper and respectful.
This entry is located in the following unit: civi-, civ-, cit- (page 2)