Eldridge’s Etymology of the Week–Polite

It’s universal. It’s obvious. Don’t chew with your mouth open! Tuck your shirt in! Leave the seat down! Everybody knows it. Don’t they? If they don’t, it just makes you want to strangle… um, somebody. This week’s etymology is something that never fails to annoy, one way or another. This weeks etymology is polite, 1) showing good manners toward others, as in behavior, speech, etc.; courteous; civil: a polite reply. 2) refined or cultured: polite society. 3) of a refined or elegant kind: polite learning.

www.finedictionary.com/polite.html 

polite

Definitions

• WordNet 3.6
  • adj polite showing regard for others in manners, speech, behavior, etc.
  • adj polite not rude; marked by satisfactory (or especially minimal) adherence to social usages and sufficient but not noteworthy consideration for others "even if he didn't like them he should have been civil"- W.S. Maugham"
  • adj polite marked by refinement in taste and manners "cultivated speech","cultured Bostonians","cultured tastes","a genteel old lady","polite society"

• 10. How to be polite

  Poland is one of the few countries in the world, where courteous hand-kissing is still a common practice. This high level of politeness is reflected in the already very formal language. Where many languages opt for a you-thou kind of distinction between younger and older people and formal and informal situations, Polish uses a title: Pan, Sir, and Pani, Lady. So to ask someone formally if he or she speaks English, say: Czy Pan/Pani mówi po angielsku? Lit. Does the Sir/the Lady speak English? Polish people are even polite when they argue. You might hear the odd Pan jest idiotą. Sir, you're an idiot.