1. Marked by or showing consideration for others, tact, and observance of accepted social usage.
2. Refined; elegant: polite society.

Synonyms: These adjectives mean mindful of, conforming to, or marked by good manners. Polite and mannerly imply consideration for others and the adherence to conventional social standards of good behavior: "It costs nothing to be polite" (Winston S. Churchill). The child was scolded by his grandmother for not being more mannerly.
Civil suggests only the barest observance of accepted social usages; it often means merely neither polite nor rude: If you can't be friendly, at least be civil.
Courteous implies courtliness and dignity: "If a man be gracious and courteous to strangers, it shows he is a citizen of the world" (Francis Bacon).
Genteel, which originally meant well-bred, now usually suggests excessive and affected refinement: "A man, indeed, is not genteel when he gets drunk" (James Boswell).