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Synonyms

dutiful

American  
[doo-tuh-fuhl, dyoo-] / ˈdu tə fəl, ˈdyu- /

adjective

  1. performing the duties expected or required of one; characterized by doing one's duty: a dutiful child.

    a dutiful citizen;

    a dutiful child.
    Synonyms:
    duteous, submissive, obedient, deferential, respectful

  2. required by duty; proceeding from or expressive of a sense of duty.

    dutiful attention.
dutiful British  
/ ˈdjuːtɪfʊl /

adjective

  1. exhibiting or having a sense of duty

  2. characterized by or resulting from a sense of duty

    a dutiful answer
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • dutifully adverb
  • dutifulness noun
  • quasi-dutiful adjective
  • undutiful adjective

Etymology

Origin of dutiful

First recorded in 1545–55; duty + -ful

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.