Meanings
comparative more chivalrous · superlative most chivalrous
- Honourable, especially to women; gallant.
“I would then never have known what minute, or by whom, I was to be attacked next. But the brutes are more chivalrous than man—they do not stoop to cowardly intrigue.”
1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page 962 more examples
Among boys there are laws of honour and chivalrous codes, not written, or formally taught, but intuitively understood by all, and invariably acted upon by the loyal and the true.
1859, George Meredith, chapter 5, in The Ordeal of Richard Feverel. A History of Father and Son. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Chapman and Hall, →OCLCIt amazed me that I could have allowed myself to be let in for a binge of this description simply because a woman wished it. Too bally chivalrous for our own good, we Woosters, and always have been.
1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, “VII AND XXI”, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, →OCLCSynonyms: chivalric
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveHonourable, especially to women; gallant.
adjectiveInvolving chivalry.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Old Frenchchevalerous
- Middle Englishchivalerous
- Englishchivalrous
From Middle English chivalerous, from Old French chevalerous; see chivalry.
More words from Middle English, Old French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian кавалерски, галантен
- кавалерски (kavalerski)of a man: honourable
- галантен (galanten)of a man: honourable
- рицарски (ricarski)involving chivalry
Catalan cavalleresc, cavallerós
- cavallerescof a man: honourable
- cavallerósof a man: honourable
- cavallerescinvolving chivalry
- cavallerósinvolving chivalry
Chinese Mandarin 騎士般的 /骑士般的, 彬彬有禮的 /彬彬有礼的
- 騎士般的 /骑士般的 (qíshì bān de)of a man: honourable
- 彬彬有禮的 /彬彬有礼的 (bīnbīnyǒulǐ de)of a man: honourable
- 騎士風範的 /骑士风范的 (qíshì fēngfàn de)involving chivalry
Czech rytířský, rytířský
- rytířskýof a man: honourable
- rytířskýinvolving chivalry
Esperanto kavalira, kavalireca
- kavaliraof a man: honourable
- kavalirecainvolving chivalry
Finnish ritarillinen, ritarillinen
- ritarillinenof a man: honourable
- ritarillineninvolving chivalry
French chevaleresque, galant
- chevaleresqueof a man: honourable
- galantof a man: honourable
- galantinvolving chivalry
- chevaleresqueinvolving chivalry
German ritterlich, ehrlich
- ritterlichof a man: honourable
- ehrlichof a man: honourable
- ritterlichinvolving chivalry
Irish ridiriúil, ridiriúil
- ridiriúilof a man: honourable
- ridiriúilinvolving chivalry
Italian cavalleresco, galante
- cavallerescoof a man: honourable
- galanteof a man: honourable
Portuguese cavalheiresco, cavalheiresco
- cavalheirescoof a man: honourable
- cavalheirescoinvolving chivalry
Russian ры́царский, гала́нтный
- ры́царский (rýcarskij)of a man: honourable
- гала́нтный (galántnyj)of a man: honourable
- благоро́дный (blagoródnyj)of a man: honourable
- ры́царский (rýcarskij)involving chivalry
- гала́нтный (galántnyj)involving chivalry
Scottish Gaelic ridireach, ridireach
- ridireachof a man: honourable
- ridireachinvolving chivalry
Spanish caballeroso, caballeroso
- caballerosoof a man: honourable
- caballerosoinvolving chivalry
- caballerescoinvolving chivalry
Swedish ridderlig, ädel
- ridderligof a man: honourable
- ädelof a man: honourable
- ridderliginvolving chivalry
- ädelinvolving chivalry
Cite this entry
chivalrous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chivalrous
“chivalrous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chivalrous. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “chivalrous,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chivalrous.
Source: chivalrous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.