Definition of Curtsey

1. Noun. Bending the knees; a gesture of respect made by women.

Exact synonyms: Curtsy
Generic synonyms: Reverence, Gesture, Motion
Derivative terms: Curtsy, Curtsy

2. Verb. Bend the knees in a gesture of respectful greeting.
Exact synonyms: Curtsy
Generic synonyms: Bow
Derivative terms: Curtsy

Definition of Curtsey

1. Noun. A small bow, generally performed by a woman or a girl, where she crosses one calf of her leg behind the other and briefly bends her knees and lowers her body in deference. ¹

2. Verb. To make a curtsey. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Curtsey

1. to curtsy [v -ED, -ING, -S] - See also: curtsy

Lexicographical Neighbors of Curtsey

curtate
curtation
curtations
curtaxe
curtaxes
curter
curtesies
curtest
curtesy
curtilage
curtilages
curtin
curtly
curtness
curtnesses
curtsey (current term)
curtseyed
curtseying
curtseys
curtsied
curtsies
curtsy
curtsying
curule
curundum
cururo
cururos
curvaceous
curvaceously
curvaceousness

Literary usage of Curtsey

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. The Life and Theatrical Times of Charles Kean, F.S.A. by Fanny Kemble, Kate Field, John William Cole (1882)
"Hall's room one evening, I found she had been provided with tallow ones, and, upon remonstrating about it with the chambermaid, she replied (with a curtsey ..."

2. The Heart of Mid-Lothian by Walter Scott (1878)
"She answered, therefore, civil salutations of chance passengers with a civil curtsey, and chose, with anxious circumspection, such places of repose as ..."

3. Records of Later Life by Fanny Kemble (1882)
"Hall's room one evening, I found she bad been provided with tallow ones, and, upon remonstrating about it with the chambermaid, she replied (with a curtsey ..."

4. The German Theatre by August von Kotzebue, Joseph Marius Babo, August Wilhelm Iffland, Friedrich Schiller, F. L. Schroeder, Karl Reitzenstein, Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1806)
"(Makes another disdainful curtsey, and exit at the middle door.) Gurli. Ha! Ha! Ha! The foolish old woman! How she turns and twists her body, ..."

5. The Autobiography and Correspondence of Mary Granville, Mrs. Delany: With by Delany (Mary), Augusta Waddington Hall Llanover (1862)
"And poor Mrs. Evans, ye present housekeeper, is not so adroit as her predecessor. I dare say she curtsey'd every minute—" Yes,'' or "no," my lady, ..."

6. Reminiscences of a Diplomatist's Wife: Further Reminiscences of a by Hugh Fraser (1912)
"... An Unmounted Mother-in-law — Bath, the Forsaken— The Mistake of a Great Physician — I Make My curtsey to My Sovereign — "The First Turn at the Mill! ..."

Other Resources:

Search for Curtsey on Dictionary.com!Search for Curtsey on Thesaurus.com!Search for Curtsey on Google!Search for Curtsey on Wikipedia!

Search