a civil question deserves a civil answer
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
A polite question should receive a polite response
Literally: a civil question deserves a civil answer
Examples
When asked about his political views, he remembered that a civil question deserves a civil answer
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed on English Wikiquote “English proverbs” (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-31). Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “a civil question deserves a civil answer” mean?
A polite question should receive a polite response Literally: a civil question deserves a civil answer
Is “a civil question deserves a civil answer” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.