civilian

American  

[si-vil-yuhn] / sɪˈvɪl jən /

noun

• civilians
  plural

1. a person who is not on active duty with a military, naval, police, or fire fighting organization.

2. Informal. anyone regarded by members of a profession, interest group, society, etc., as not belonging; nonprofessional; outsider.

   We need a producer to run the movie studio, not some civilian from the business world.

3. a person versed in or studying Roman or civil law.

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adjective

1. of, pertaining to, formed by, or administered by civilians.

civilian British  

/ sɪˈvɪljən /

noun

1. 1. a person whose primary occupation is civil or nonmilitary

   2. ( as modifier )

      civilian life

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• noncivilian
  noun
• anticivilian
  adjective
• procivilian
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• civilians
  plural

Etymology

Origin of civilian

1350–1400; Middle English: student of civil law < Old French civilien (adj.); see civil, -ian

Explanation

The most common meaning for civilian is simply someone who is not in the military. It can also refer to any object that is not military in origin — e.g., "civilian clothes" or "civilian life." The meaning of civilian as a non military person is a relatively new one, dating from the early 19th century. Before that it referred to the code of law that governed non-military life. In fact for hundreds of years a civilian was somebody who was a judge or otherwise an expert on the law that applied outside military courts. Because it comes originally from a French word, remember to spell it with only one "l," even though it sounds like it should have two.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

civilian civilians

Exact numbers of Afghan civilian deaths are harder to come by, but we know they are in the tens of thousands.

From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2026

Among the main pathways recruiters use to exploit foreigners are job advertisements online, often with the promise of false civilian work, Amnesty said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

According to the European University Institute, the UK tended to contribute up to a few hundred personnel annually to both civilian and defence missions, fewer than larger EU members such as France and Germany.

From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026

Ukrainian officials have vowed to avoid targeting airliners and civilian deaths.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

But while in the past she’d been a civilian working on the edges of the military, now she made a positive decision to follow a military career herself.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

Remembering the civilians who went to war on 9/11.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

After that shock, military personnel and civilians alike moved toward the danger to help others.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

"We owe an enduring debt of gratitude to the more than 22,000 Service personnel, scientists and civilians who contributed to the UK's nuclear testing programme and helped safeguard our national security," the spokesperson said.

From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026

The jihadist groups not only target civilians and the military but are also struggling for dominance over each other in the Sahel, and especially in Niger.

From Barron's ● Aug. 29, 2026

He was writing about Commando Special Forces, how popular and revered they were by civilians, but his dislike of their commander, a German mercenary, made his words stiff.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Related Words

• citizen
• noncombatant