student asking question

What does "stay civil" mean here?

teacher

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

To "stay/remain civil" means that the state of things remains polite, calm, or cultured. We often use this expression to de-escalate a situation where impolite language or violence may be used. When things are no longer civil, they are hectic, rushed, hurried, or even violent. The speaker is stating that with proper time management, all tasks get completed on time and everything stays calm and unrushed. He has used this expression to add a bit of humor to his speech. Ex: Stop fighting! Let's keep things civil. Ex: No matter what happens, we need to respect each other and stay civil.

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