polite /pəˈlaɪt/ adjective politer; politest
politer; politest
Learner's definition of POLITE
[or more polite; most polite]
1
: having or showing good manners or respect for other people有礼貌的；客气的 -
Your children are very polite. [=they behave well with other people]你的孩子们都很有礼貌。
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It was polite of him to hold the door for them.他很有礼貌，为他们撑着门。
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Please be polite to the guests.请礼貌待客。
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It isn't polite to interrupt people when they're talking.打断别人的谈话不礼貌。
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He said he liked the show, but he was only being polite. [=he did not like the show, but he said that he did in order to show good manners]他说喜欢这场演出，不过只是出于礼貌。
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When she called the painting “unique” that was just a polite [=nice] way of saying she didn't like it.当她说那幅画“独特”时，仅仅是礼貌地表明她不喜欢。
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She received some polite applause despite the mistakes in her performance.尽管表演时出了些差错，她还是得到一些出于礼貌的掌声。
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They had been fighting, but they were able to make polite [=civil] conversation at dinner.他们之前老是打架，不过吃饭时还能保持礼貌交谈。
2
always used before a noun : socially correct or proper客套的；应酬的；礼节性的 -
polite speech [=somewhat formal speech that is not offensive and can be used in all situations]客套话
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Certain words should not be used in polite society/company. [=with people who value good manners]有些字眼是不能当着文雅之人的面说的。
— politely
adverb -
She asked them politely to leave. = She politely asked them to leave.她礼貌地请他们离开。
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He is not, to put it politely [=to say this in a way that shows good manners], the best guitar player in the world.客气地说，他不是世界最优秀的吉他手。
— politeness
noun [noncount]