curtsy vs courtesy
Definitions
verb
- make a curtsy; usually done only by girls and women; as a sign of respect
- bend the knees in a gesture of respectful greeting
noun
- bending the knees; a gesture of respect made by women
Examples
Inside the house a maid bobbed in curtsy to indicate that Grace should follow her upstairs.
‘I thought tennis had had enough of manners,’ he writes, ‘of bowing and curtsying to rich people who didn't pay taxes.’
And then, within a matter of months, people were bowing to her, people were curtsying to her, people were looking at everything she wore, analyzing everything.
Definitions
noun
- a courteous manner
- a courteous or respectful or considerate remark
- a courteous or respectful or considerate act
Examples
After his long stretch as an untouchable hero and saint (courtesy of hagiographer R Bolt) it was about time that creep More was taken off his pedestal.
This usage proceeded, in part, from the notion of consanguinity between every member of a clan, even of the lowest degree, to his chieftain, and the affability and courtesy with which the head was in the habit of treating those over whom he ruled.
Uncle Shim shared these thoughts both as a courtesy to our family and as instruction to me.
