civilian

 
Pronunciation: /sɪˈvɪlj(ə)n/

noun

  • a person not in the armed services or the police force: terrorists and soldiers have killed tens of thousands of civilians
  • informal a person who is not a member of a particular profession or group, as viewed by a member of that group: I talk to a lot of actresses and they say that civilians are scared of them

adjective

  • relating to civilians: civilian clothes

Origin:

late Middle English (denoting a practitioner of civil law): from Old French civilien, in the phrase droit civilien 'civil law'. The current sense arose in the early 19th century

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