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demure

UK/dɪˈmjʊə(ɹ)/US/dɪˈmjʊɹ/
adjectiveC1Occasional — familiar, but not everyday · #11,277 of 15,258neutral

Demure means quiet, modest and reserved. A demure smile, demure in company, a demure dress.

It is used almost only of women and carries an old expectation with it, which is why it can sound like a compliment and a cage at once. Of clothing it simply means modest in cut.

Definitions of demure

  1. 1adjectivedemureQuiet, modest and reserved.C1

    “The quiet, demure girl in the corner turned out to be the best singer in the class.”

demure is a quality.

Where it comes from

Middle English demure comes from an Anglo-Norman phrase meaning of mature bearing.

  1. Proto-Indo-European

    *meh₂-

  2. Anglo-Norman

    de mure port — with a mature demeanor

  3. Middle English

    demure

  4. English, today

    demure

Middle English demure, demwre, an abbreviation of Anglo-Norman de mure port (“with a mature demeanor”) (compare Old French meur from Latin mātūrus):

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

demure in the wild

  • The novel was received warmly but without great enthusiasm, as an enjoyable if slightly demure domestic follow-up to The Mezzanine.

    Room Temperature (novel)

  • The geisha of this district are known for being subtle and demure, few in number but each highly accomplished dancers and musicians.

    Kamishichiken

  • Glenda has been described as "complex", "vulnerable"," "demure, dynamic and assured".

    Glenda Mitchell

  • The nudes of this period are "displayed boldly, with only the faintest suggestion of setting.... neither demure nor provocative, they are depicted with a degree of objectivity.

    Nude Sitting on a Divan

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.