The Oxford Thesaurus An A-Z Dictionary of Synonyms - humbleadj.

1) modest, reserved, unpretentious, unostentatious, self-effacing, unassuming, unpresuming: For someone who has accomplished so much, she is quite humble. 2) submissive, meek, servile, obsequious, deferential, mild, respectful, subservient, subdued: Usually pompous, Nigel became humble in the presence of the chairman. 3) lowly, low, inferior, mean, ignoble, ordinary, plebeian, common, simple, obscure, unprepossessing, unimportant, undistinguished, insignificant; low-born, base, base-born: He lives in a humble cottage. Though she came from a humble background, she rose to become prime minister. --v. 4) chasten, bring or pull down, subdue, abase, debase, demean, lower, degrade, downgrade, reduce, make (someone) eat humble pie, lose face, shame, humiliate, crush, break, mortify, chagrin, Colloq put down, take (someone) down a peg or notch: He found army discipline a humbling experience.