mannerly

M3A1N1N1E1R1L1Y4
Canada/ˈmænəɹli/New Zealand/ˈmɛnɘliː/

adjective

Having good manners; polite.

UncommonScrabble 13

Meanings

adjectivemannerly (comparative more mannerly, superlative most mannerly)

comparative more mannerly · superlative most mannerly

  1. Having good manners; polite.

    1861, Charlotte Yonge, The Young Step-Mother ...but Genevieve's laugh roused her again, partly because she thought it less mannerly than accorded with the girl's usual politeness.

    2 more examples

    Lucetta, as thou lov'st me, let me have / What thou think'st meet, and is most mannerly.

    c. 1590–1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Two Gentlemen of Verona”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals)

    Tut, tut, here is a mannerly forbearance: / The truth appeares ſo naked on my ſide, / That any purblind eye may find it out.

    1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv], page 103, column 2
adverbmannerly (comparative more mannerly, superlative most mannerly)

comparative more mannerly · superlative most mannerly

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectivesocially correct in behavior

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Middle Englishmanerely
  2. Englishmannerly

From Middle English manerely, equivalent to manner + -ly.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

mannerly. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mannerly

MLA

“mannerly.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mannerly. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mannerly,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mannerly.

Source: mannerly on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.