Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of respectful Still other posters remind everyone to use respectful language when referring to women. The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 28 Feb. 2025 Pro tip: Park on the street and take fun photos, but be respectful and don't walk into the garden. Kate Murphy, Axios, 28 Feb. 2025 The Jets again fell short even with a four-time league MVP, but Rodgers still put up respectful numbers — 3,897 passing yards and 28 touchdowns. Paulina Dedaj, Fox News, 27 Feb. 2025 Even The Nun’s Story, an agnostic’s film but one of Fred Zinnemann’s finest, was respectful. Armond White, National Review, 19 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for respectful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for respectful
Adjective
  • The Ptolemaic model depicted planets moving around Earth in a big circle, known as a deferent, then going around a smaller circle while retrograding, called an epicycle.
    Carlie Procell, USA TODAY, 25 Nov. 2024
  • Curiously, the Biden administration sees it this way, too, but still takes a stance deferent to Chancellor Angela Merkel’s fierce advocacy for it and opposition to U.S. sanctions that would target European companies and individuals involved in its construction.
    Jimmy Quinn, National Review, 20 July 2021
Adjective
  • Interaction with the clients is very polite, very kind—but very short.
    Elise Taylor, Vogue, 3 Mar. 2025
  • When thinking about quintessential Southern attributes, qualities like hospitable, benevolent, and polite come to mind.
    Jennifer Prince, Southern Living, 2 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Inherent in writing is a reverent mystique, untapped by AI’s predictive interpretation.
    Elizabeth Brown, Hartford Courant, 28 Feb. 2025
  • The Sixteen The Church of Saint Mary the Virgin, October 26 Part of Miller Theatre’s early-music series, the English vocal ensemble performs reverent music old and recent by William Byrd and Arvo Pärt.
    Justin Davidson, Vulture, 30 Aug. 2024
Adjective
  • Veterans groups, however, complained that the new court was too deferential to the VA when reviewing the agency’s decisions.
    Maureen Groppe, USA TODAY, 5 Mar. 2025
  • In short, the Trump-Ukraine policy that the country’s defenders feared — one that is overly deferential to Russia and pushes for a quick deal, even at the cost of Ukraine’s sovereignty — appears to be coming to fruition.
    Joshua Keating, Vox, 20 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Respectful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/respectful. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.

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