WordValehumble
modest; not proud
In more detail
1. (adjective) not proud; not thinking you are better than other people
2. (adjective) simple and not expensive or important
3. (verb) to make someone feel ashamed or less important
Examples
- 1. He remained humble despite winning many awards.
- 2. They lived in a humble cottage in the countryside.
- 3. The loss humbled the team and motivated them to train harder.
How to use humble
Humble as an adjective describes someone who lacks arrogance or whose origins are modest and unpretentious. As a verb, it means to reduce someone's pride or status, often through embarrassment or defeat. The phrase 'in my humble opinion' is used ironically to introduce disagreement while maintaining politeness.
Common phrases
- humble beginnings
- humble opinion
- eat humble pie
- humble apology
- remain humble
- humble servant
Synonyms
modest · meek · unpretentious · self-effacing · unassuming
Opposites
arrogant · proud · haughty
Word family
humbler · humblest · humbly · humility · humbled
A common mistake
Learners sometimes confuse humble with humiliate; while humiliate means to cause embarrassment or loss of dignity, humble is milder and can be self-directed (to humble oneself) or used neutrally to describe modest character.
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