as in humble
showing, expressing, or offered in a spirit of humility or unseemly submissiveness
every command was obeyed in the menial manner of someone who seemed grateful just to be in the presence of a celebrity
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in servant
a person hired to perform household or personal services
immigrants to that country faced fierce prejudice and could expect to find work only as menials
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of menial
Patrick Oppmann, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2025
Resistant to seeking full-time employment that would exhaust his writing time, Paul instead signs up to a website that assigns one-off menial jobs — yard work, rubble removal, flatpack furniture assembly — to the freelancer willing to work for the lowest possible rate.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 29 Aug. 2025
Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2023
An oceanographer served as winemaker, while Mr. Maltese was the group organizer and cellar rat, a wine-industry term for those performing menial but essential tasks like topping off barrels.
—Eric Asimov, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for menial
Adjective
There were dozens of other US fugitives of justice living in Cuba, many of them would-be revolutionaries that had arrived on the island thinking Castro’s government would provide them the military training to become the next Che Guevara but instead they were given menial jobs and forgotten.
—Patrick Oppmann, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2025
Resistant to seeking full-time employment that would exhaust his writing time, Paul instead signs up to a website that assigns one-off menial jobs — yard work, rubble removal, flatpack furniture assembly — to the freelancer willing to work for the lowest possible rate.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 29 Aug. 2025
Noun
Outside the windowless offices, the anthropocene was over—somehow these hapless menials had missed its bang or its whimper—and the pre-human food chain was busy reasserting itself.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2023
An oceanographer served as winemaker, while Mr. Maltese was the group organizer and cellar rat, a wine-industry term for those performing menial but essential tasks like topping off barrels.
—Eric Asimov, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for menial
Recent Examples of Synonyms for menial
Adjective
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Whereas Bowen’s upbringing created a natural affinity with Proust, his work also struck a chord with contemporaries of more humble origin.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 Feb. 2026
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For Newsom, a middle-aged man with a large, young family, a glow of professional attainment, and, most days, enough Oribe Crème in his hair to dress a good Crab Louie, the challenge has been to look both humble and concerned.—
Nathan Heller,
New Yorker,
1 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Amongst the servants, meanwhile, a hierarchy based on standing and rank also dictated living conditions like proximity to the family and who got to eat dinner first.—
Emma Banks,
InStyle,
29 Jan. 2026
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Holding hands, terrace kisses and renegade servants?—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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After all, the deal — for a long-forsaken project, an action-comedy franchise starring two aging stars — underscores the servile fealty of new Paramount owners Larry and David Ellison amid their recent maneuvering to take control of TikTok and Warner Bros. Discovery (the latter seemingly futile).—
Gary Baum,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Dec. 2025
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Earlier this year, my colleague and bud Kelefa Sanneh suggested that music critics, as a lot, have gone soft—becoming submissive, overly agreeable, and, in some cases, nearly servile.—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
1 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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The magic of the series comes in the complete buy-in of the contestants as well as Davies and Horne (Horne's character is a meek, annoying and sycophantic version of himself).—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
22 Jan. 2026
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But savings were meek, with the largest dip found in Stockton, off only 4% last year vs up 2% in 2024 and 36% over the previous four years.—
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
20 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Menial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/menial. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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