Civilisation
//ˌsɪv.ɪ.laɪˈzeɪ.ʃən// noun
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Hong Kong, and Commonwealth spelling of civilization. countable, uncountable
"From Keighley onwards we had obviously returned to civilisation, for the surrounding country was now studded with the sodium street lights of suburbia and a thickening industrial haze was blotting out the moon."
- 2 the quality of excellence in thought and manners and taste wordnet
- 3 a society in an advanced state of social development (e.g., with complex legal and political and religious organizations) wordnet
- 4 a particular society at a particular time and place wordnet
- 5 the social process whereby societies achieve an advanced stage of development and organization wordnet
Example
More examples"Among human beings, the subjection of women is much more complete at a certain level of civilisation than it is among savages. And the subjection is always reinforced by morality."
Etymology
Borrowed from French civilisation, equivalent to civilise + -ation or civil + -isation.
More for "civilisation"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.