well-behaved

well-behaved — adjective

1. A well-behaved child, student, or pet follows rules and instructions, stays quie

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

A well-behaved child, student, or pet follows rules and instructions, stays quiet when necessary, and treats others politely and kindly.

Example

The teacher praised the whole class for being so well-behaved during the assembly.

predicative use: praised [someone] for being well-behaved

The family's well-behaved dog never jumps on visitors or barks too loudly.

attributive use before noun

Common collocations
  • well-behaved child/children
  • well-behaved dog/pet
  • well-behaved student/class
  • well-behaved audience
Synonyms
  • obedient

    Stronger emphasis on doing what you are told; more common for dogs and very young children

  • polite

    Focuses on manners and kindness, not necessarily on following rules

  • well-mannered

    Very similar in meaning; slightly more formal, often used for adults

Antonyms
  • naughty

    Playful, mild misbehaviour, usually of children

  • disobedient

    Refuses to follow rules or orders; stronger than 'naughty'

Grammar Patterns

well-behaved + noun

be + well-behaved

Usage Note

Most frequently describes children, students, or pets. Works both before a noun ('a well-behaved class') and after the verb 'be' ('the dog was well-behaved').

Common Mistakes

He is a well-behaved businessman.
He is a well-behaved child.
'well-behaved' sounds unnatural for adults in professional contexts; use 'professional' or 'well-mannered' instead.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Well-behaved describes someone who follows rules and acts with good manners, often used for children, students, or pets. Obedient is stronger — it emphasises doing what you are told without question, and is more common for dogs than for people in everyday speech. Polite focuses on having good manners such as saying 'please' and 'thank you' and not interrupting, but does not necessarily imply following rules. Well-mannered is very close to well-behaved but sounds slightly more formal and is often used for adults. For example, a well-behaved child both follows the teacher's instructions and speaks politely to classmates, while a child can be polite (saying the right words) but not well-behaved (running around the room).

obedient ↗polite ↗well-mannered

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • extremely well-behaved
  • perfectly well-behaved
  • remarkably well-behaved

Phrases

  • well-behaved in class
  • well-behaved at the table

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word well-behaved is formed from the adverb well (meaning 'in a good or proper manner') and the past participle behaved, from the verb behave. The verb behave comes from the Old English phrase behabban, meaning 'to have, contain, or restrain oneself'. The compound adjective first appeared in English writing in the late 1500s.