Webster
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Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Polite

Po·lite′ (pō·līt′), a. [Compar. Politer; superl. Politest.] [L. politus, p. p. of polire to polish: cf. F. poli. See Polish, v.] 1. Smooth; polished. [Obs.]

Rays of light falling on a polite surface. Sir I. Newton.

2. Smooth and refined in behavior or manners; well bred; courteous; complaisant; obliging; civil.

He marries, bows at court, and grows polite. Pope.

3. Characterized by refinement, or a high degree of finish; as, polite literature. Macaulay.

Syn. — Polished; refined; well bred; courteous; affable; urbane; civil; courtly; elegant; genteel.

Po·lite′, v. t. To polish; to refine; to render polite. [Obs.] Ray.

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Noah Porter, editor (Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913). Public domain. Text as transcribed by MICRA, Inc., from Project Gutenberg. Changed for Deep Dive Bible: Greek, which our source spelled in Latin letters, set in Greek letters; entries of one spelling merged into one article; Greek words our source left out (shown as “?”), read from the 1898 printing, from the same plates (the Library of Congress’s copy), where the place could be found with certainty.