What does "seemly" mean?

Of behavior, appropriate; suited to the occasion or purpose; becoming.

What is a synonym for "seemly"?

Common synonyms include: apposite, appropriate, becoming, comme il faut, decent, expedient.

Seemly

//ˈsiːmli// adj, adv

adj, adv ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Adjective

1
Of behavior, appropriate; suited to the occasion or purpose; becoming.
"His behavior was seemly, as befits a gentleman."

Adjective

1
according with custom or propriety wordnet

Adverb

1
Appropriately, fittingly.
"The great earthes wombe they open to the sky, / And with sad Cypresse seemely it embraue [...]."

Synonyms

All synonyms

apposite appropriate becoming comme il faut decent expedient

Antonyms

All antonyms

immoral unseemly out of place

Example

More examples

"The ancient Roman poet Terence declared that in every endeavor, the seemly course for wise men is to try persuasion first."

Etymology

From Middle English semly, semely, semelich, from Old Norse sœmiligr (“seemly”); equivalent to seem + -ly. Cognate with Icelandic sæmilegur (“seemly, passable”), Danish sømmelig (“seemly”).

More for "seemly"

Synonyms Sentences Pronunciation Translate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonyms See usage examples Check pronunciation Browse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.