politesse

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politesse

/pɒlɪˈtɛs/ UK
/pɑləˈtɛs/ US

Where it comes from

From French politesse, from Italian politezza, from polito, past participle of pulire (“to clean”), from Latin polire, present active infinite form of poliō (“to polish”).

noun politesses

countable, uncountable Civility, politeness, courtesy or gallantry; genteel politeness or an instance of this. So if you meet me, have some courtesy / Have some sympathy, and some taste / Use all your well-learned politesse / Or I'll lay your soul to waste

Translations

Every language

noun civility, courtesy

Français	savoir-vivre

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Cite this

MLA

"politesse." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/politesse. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

politesse. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/politesse

Chicago

"politesse." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/politesse.

BibTeX

@misc{politesse_2026,
  title = {politesse},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/politesse},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}