How to Use courtly in a Sentence

courtly

adverb

• In fact, the reindeer herders turn out to be quite courtly to the fair-haired Norwegian.
  — Washington Post, 10 Mar. 2021
• They were charmed—just as the Windsors were charmed by the courtly and urbane Hartnell.
  — James Collard, Robb Report, 9 Sep. 2022
• Wilson is a gracious, courtly man in person as well on the page.
  — John Horgan, Scientific American, 25 June 2021
• The courtly, soft-spoken son of a judge and a nurse from the Eastern Shore had to be recruited to run most every step of the way.
  — Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2022
• But as the two ride along in a cab, the seemingly courtly elf man gets an idea: mightn’t the slurry woman like to stop by his place for a drink?
  — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 15 Jan. 2021
• In the story, the narrator and his wife rent rooms in a British manor owned by Dr. Selwyn, a courtly and eccentric recluse, and his wife.
  — Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 5 Oct. 2021
• In this story line, Grant’s foil was always the courtly gentleman, Robert E. Lee.
  — Anne Marshall, The Conversation, 5 Dec. 2022
• Some, like Milton Caniff (or my father), were warm and courtly.
  — Cullen Murphy, Vanities, 9 Aug. 2017
• Dinkins was a calm and courtly figure with a penchant for tennis and formal wear.
  — CBS News, 24 Nov. 2020
• Religion, art, and every aspect of courtly culture were used to exalt the image of the new queen.
  — History Magazine, 29 Dec. 2020
• The subject confronts the viewer with a direct gaze, evoking the courtly portraits of the mid-17th century painter Diego Velázquez.
  — New York Times, 20 Apr. 2021
• From courtly letterpress to modern, there is stationery with the perfect look and feel to let friends and family know to reserve the day just for you two.
  — oregonlive, 4 Sep. 2020
• Alonzo is a courtly looking man with a trim beard and an apologetic bearing.
  — Gene Weingarten, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2021
• Powell, a courtly Virginian, was then the court's moderate, keeping the bench from tilting too far left or right.
  — Bill Mears, Fox News, 27 June 2018
• Count Orlok, played by Max Schreck, is reclusive and antisocial, not a courtly debonair.
  — Roy Schwartz, CNN, 2 Apr. 2022
• And Poe, born in Boston but, thanks to his Virginia upbringing, speaking with a soft, Southern lilt, is far too courtly to fit in with his coarse classmates.
  — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 23 Dec. 2022
• Properly taken at a thumping one beat per measure, the Minuet was more earthy than courtly.
  — Scott Cantrell, Dallas News, 21 May 2021
• At a time of bombast and insults, his deportment has been invariably civil and courtly.
  — The Editors, National Review, 27 Oct. 2022
• Then comes a moment of wistful clarity: an immaculate phrase descends an octave, with a courtly little turn on the fourth step of the scale.
  — Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2022
• Set against the breathtaking backdrop of gray-skied Irish marshlands and crumbling stone castles, the film takes you deep into sacred forests, courtly chambers, and the eerie, glowing depths of a blood-red lake.
  — Liam Hes, Vogue, 5 Aug. 2021
• Alex Hassell plays Ross as a perfect paragon of courtly cynicism, always obliging and never to be trusted.
  — New York Times, 22 Dec. 2021
• Eventually, even the shocks of courtly excess — The Great's raison d'être — make way for a more conventional tale of royal intrigue.
  — Inkoo Kang, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 May 2020
• Relief sculptures, on loan from the British Museum, that depict warfare, hunting, courtly life, etc.
  — Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2022
• The minuet, taken in one beat per measure, sounded alternately earthy and courtly.
  — Dallas News, 25 Mar. 2022
• It’s there in his courtly intelligence, his gentle dot-eyed valor, and the way that Sudeikis clearly feels comfortable acting from behind a folksy drawl.
  — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 6 Oct. 2021
• Kind and courtly, but keenly sensitive to slights, Hall became the Wildcats’ head coach after Rupp grudgingly retired in 1972.
  — Tim Sullivan, The Courier-Journal, 16 Jan. 2022
• The courtly senator with chiseled features and a thick shock of gray hair was so popular with Virginia voters that Democrats did not bother to challenge him in 2002 for his re-election to his fifth term.
  — CBS News, 26 May 2021
• The story is of a prosperous middle-class tailor’s son who tries to acquire the manners of an aristocrat, from courtly dancing and fencing to grand banqueting.
  — Scott Cantrell, Dallas News, 20 Feb. 2021
• Warner, a courtly figure with chiseled features and a thick shock of gray hair, was so popular with Virginia voters that Democrats did not bother to challenge him in 2002 for his re-election to his fifth term.
  — Eileen Putman, Anchorage Daily News, 26 May 2021
• During the five-week course, students can expect to learn about courtly fashions, the craze for crinoline and how members of the royal family influence fashion today.
  — Jennifer Nalewicki, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Apr. 2020

Last Updated: 27 Jun 2024