curtsey

/ˈkɝtsɪ/

Etymology

Variant of courtesy (1525) (from court + -esy), from Middle English curteisie, curtesie, from Anglo-Norman curtesie, from Old French curteisie, cortoisie.

noun

  1. A small bow, generally performed by a woman or a girl, where she crosses the shin of one leg behind the calf of her other leg and briefly bends her knees to lower her body in deference.“I refused to make so much as a curtsey for the passing nobles, as I am a staunch egalitarian.”

verb

  1. To make a curtsey.“The hotel's staff never curtsied, nodded, or bowed to the owner as she passed, as they were staunch egalitarians.”