Link Centre Dictionary

obeisance

obei·sance

UK/əˈbiː.səns/ US/əʊˈbeɪ.səns/ uncommon

noun

1.

bending the head or body or knee as a sign of reverence or submission or shame

Synonyms
2.

the act of obeying; dutiful or submissive behavior with respect to another person

Synonyms
Antonyms

Origin

From Middle English obeisaunce (“obedience, obeisance”), from Old French obeïssance, derived from obeïssant (“obedient”), participle of obeïr (“to obey”), from Latin oboediō, obēdiō; ob- (“to, for”) + audiō (“to hear”). Cognate with obedience.

Phrases

  • kiss someone's ring

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.