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

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Etymology

Origin of civilian

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

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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

And despite veterans having a lower unemployment rate than nonveterans in 2025, nearly 60% feel underemployed after transitioning to civilian life, Penn State’s Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness reported, citing the Veterans Metrics Initiative.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 11, 2026

One of those pay packages gave thousands of civilian city workers raises of about 24% over five years.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 8, 2026

Eisenkot has proposed requiring national service for all Israelis but allowing citizens to choose a civilian option rather than the military, opening the door to integrating the ultra-Orthodox.

From Barron's ● Nov. 7, 2026

He also formed a civilian “posse” to respond to any potential protests after the murder of George Floyd.

From Slate ● Nov. 3, 2026

The beginning of all true wisdom concerning the Farewell Address is that Washington’s core insights were firmly grounded in the lessons he had learned as America’s premier military and civilian leader during the revolutionary era.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

On paper, veterans often appear financially secure, outperforming civilians on key long-term benchmarks.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 11, 2026

The Salvadorans and other forces must do everything to prevent casualties in areas where gang members live among civilians, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

An unspecified number of civilians were also injured during the operation, which was carried out "with rigour, balance and respect for citizens' rights", the police statement said.

From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026

A rare humanitarian ceasefire in Ukraine's Kherson region, that has allowed civilians to evacuate the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky, is due to end on Sunday night.

From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026

South Vietnamese civilians crowd a bus to Saigon as fighting approaches, 1975.

From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge

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Related Words

• citizen
• noncombatant

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