adjective

meek

MEEK/miːk/

Gentle and unlikely to resist or assert oneself.

The meek woman gives up the chair without protesting.

A gentle, self-effacing woman yields a chair she was about to use when another woman takes it, withdrawing without protest despite having visibly claimed the seat.

Etymology

Meek comes from a Scandinavian source such as Old Norse mjúkr, meaning “soft, pliant, gentle.” That softness describes temperament: mildness and humility developed into the sense of submissiveness or reluctance to assert oneself.

In context

Libranima231:11

I am a man of peace, meek and quiet, and I can put up with any affront because I have a wife and children to support

Don Quixote - Cervantes (Illustrated Audiobook) Part 1 of 4

More examples

She gives a meek nod and accepts the extra work.
He is meeker around his boss than around his friends.
Even the meekest student speaks up against the unfair rule.

Forms

meek · meeker · meekest

meekness noun — The quality of being gentle and unassertive.

meekly adverb — In a gentle way, without resistance.

Similar words

submissive: More strongly emphasizes yielding to another person's authority or control.
docile: Emphasizes being easy to teach, manage, or control.
timid: Emphasizes fear or lack of confidence rather than gentleness.