Civil Or  A  B Relating Affairs The  C

civ·il
 \\ˈsi-vəl\\ adjective1.
  a. of or relating to citizens
  b. of or relating to the state or its citizenry
      civil strife
2.
  a. 

civilized

      civil society
  b. adequate in courtesy and politeness : 

mannerly

      a civil question
3.
  a. of, relating to, or based on civil law
  b. relating to private rights and to remedies sought by action or suit distinct from criminal proceedings
  c. established by law
4. of, relating to, or involving the general public, their activities, needs, or ways, or civic affairs as distinguished from special (as military or religious) affairs
5. of time : based on the mean sun and legally recognized for use in ordinary affairs
Synonyms.
  , , , ,  mean observant of the forms required by good breeding.  often suggests little more than the avoidance of overt rudeness
      owed the questioner a civil reply
   commonly implies polish of speech and manners and sometimes suggests an absence of cordiality
      if you can't be pleasant, at least be polite
   implies more actively considerate or dignified politeness
      clerks who were unfailingly courteous to customers
   and  imply courteous attentiveness especially to women.  suggests spirited and dashing behavior and ornate expressions of courtesy
      a gallant suitor of the old school
   suggests high-minded and self-sacrificing behavior
      a chivalrous display of duty

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civ·il
\ˈsivəl, esp Brit sometimes -(ˌ)vil\ adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin civilis, from civis citizen — more at 
1. 
 a. : relating to, growing out of, or involving the relations of citizens one with another or with the body politic or organized state or its divisions and departments
  < civil institutions >
  < interested in civil affairs >
  < a contribution to civil philosophy >
 b. : concerned with or pertinent to internal affairs of a state or its citizenry in contrast to external affairs
  < civil strife between two political groups >
  < civil embargo >
2. 
 a. : composed of or shared by individuals living and participating in a community
  < the oldest form of civil society were the early city-states of oriental antiquity — H.E.Barnes >
 b. : given to or marked by group activity or organization
  < man is a civil creature >
3. : concerning, befitting, or applying to the collective citizenry or the individual citizen
 < a civil duty >
 < the individual's civil right of free speech >
— see , 
4. 
 a. : living in or exhibiting a condition of social advancement marked by organization and stability of community life or government : not uncivilized or primitive
  < tribal anarchy giving way to civil order >
 b. : marked by public order : quiet and peaceable in behavior
  < areas still civil in the turbulent country >
 c. : educated, cultured, or sophisticated : not rustic and unlettered
  < a civil philosophy >
  < civil jests >
5. 
 a. : based on or skilled in the Roman civil law
  < a civil doctor — Shakespeare >
 b. : relating to private rights and to legal proceedings in connection with them : relating to rights and remedies sought by action or suit distinct from criminal proceedings — distinguished from criminal and political
  < a civil liability >
  < civil jurisdiction >
  < a civil suit >
  < a civil remedy >
  — see 
 c. : as defined by law : having to do with legal rights or status
  < civil disabilities >
  — compare  5; see 
6. 
 a. sometimes -er/-est : adequate in courtesy and politeness : marked by satisfactory adherence to social usage and sufficient but not noteworthy consideration for others : 
  < even if he didn't like them he should have been civil — W.S.Maugham >
  < it was all he could do to be civil to her — Mary Austin >
  < I asked a civil question, and I expect a civil answer — D.H.Lawrence >
 b. sometimes -er/-est : showing goodwill, humaneness, or clemency : not savage or fierce
  < the civilest and most friendly people that we met with — Daniel Defoe >
 c. obsolete : ,  : not showy or audacious : 
 d. : seemly in aspect : compatible with human sensibilities : , 
 e. dialect, of weather : not inclement : 
7. of time : based on the mean sun and legally recognized for use by the general public in ordinary affairs — distinguished from sidereal
 < the civil calendar >
 < a civil day begins at mean midnight >
8. 
 a. : belonging or relating to the general public, the pursuits, experiences, ways, and interests of the citizenry, or to civic or temporal affairs as distinguished from military, naval, ecclesiastical, or like specialized membership or affairs : 
  < new educational techniques, learned in the war just ended, should be put into civil use — Henry Wallace >
  < the old conflict between the civil and the sacerdotal powers — Edward Clodd >
 b. : representing or serving the general public in the sphere of political rule or administration; especially : belonging to or sanctioned by an executive department of a nation, state, or municipality
  < officials of a civil board >
  < prohibiting a member of Congress from being appointed to any civil office >
  < rates and hours set by civil regulations >
9. obsolete : virtuous by nature but not regenerate : moral as distinguished from religious
 < civil righteousness >
Synonyms: 
 , , , , :  now implies adequate consideration of others and forbearance from rudeness or unpleasantness
  < remember, then, that to be civil … is the only way to be beloved and well received in company, that to be ill-bred … is intolerable — Earl of Chesterfield >
  < I mean to return his visit tomorrow. It will be only civil in return for his politeness, to ask to see him — Sheridan Le Fanu >
   may imply cold, formal, perfunctory deference to etiquette
  < let's be polite, but act as though she didn't exist — Sherwood Anderson >
  Often it differs from  in suggesting somewhat warmer or more sincere consideration of others
  < the bishop seldom questioned Jacinto about his thoughts or beliefs. He didn't think it polite — Willa Cather >
  < under ordinary circumstances he would have tried to be polite. As it was, he could hardly bring himself to give them a civil word of welcome — Norman Douglas >
   may suggest a certain polish and delicacy of action; it may connote either mere formal deference, however perfect, to custom, or a genuine sincere consideration and regard
  < the baronet peeped at his grandson with the courteous indifference of one who merely wishes to compliment that mother of anybody's child — George Meredith >
  < M. Laval owns a fine old historical painting in Chateldon, and he was courteous enough to permit me to view it — Upton Sinclair >
   suggests the stately or ceremonious
  < Pitt Crawley treated her to a profound courtly bow, such as he had used to H. H. the Duchess of Pumpernickel, when he was attaché at that court — W.M.Thackeray >
   and , in this sense, indicate especially courtesy and attention to women, the former often suggesting either the spirited and dashing or the elaborate and over-attentive
  < the qualities … of surface chivalry and gallant attentiveness in her brilliant American friend had for a moment seemed to reveal a lack in me — Havelock Ellis >
   in this sense often connotes high-mindedness and disinterested attention
  < ladies were supposed to be without sexual desire … gracious beings they were, without a sordid thought, according to the chivalrous notions of the time — W.E. Woodward >
  < she had fainted from weakness, and he had felt strangely chivalrous and paternal — Ellen Glasgow >