Obeisance is respect you show, often with the body — a bow of the head, a bend of the upper body, sometimes a deeper bow toward the floor. It is the gesture, and also the attitude of yielding to someone more powerful.

Obeisanceobeisance is respect you show是你表現出來的一種敬意，often with the body常常用身體表現——a bow of the head, a bend of the upper body, sometimes a deeper bow toward the floor低頭、彎腰，有時候更深地朝地面鞠躬。It is the gesture這是一個動作，and also the attitude of yielding to someone more powerful也是一種向比自己有權力的人低頭的態度。

You meet it in old stories, in talk about courts and kings, and in rather formal writing. Nobody in a Taipei café would say they made obeisance to the waiter.

You meet it你會遇到它 in old stories, in talk about courts and kings老故事裡、談宮廷和國王的話題裡，and in rather formal writing還有相當正式的寫作裡。Nobody in a Taipei café沒有人會在台北的咖啡店裡 would say they made obeisance to the waiter說自己對服務生行了obeisance。

Though actually, the word is a close cousin of obedience: both grew from a Latin verb that meant, at bottom, to listen. Over time they split.

Though actually不過其實，the word is a close cousin of obedience這個字和obedience（服從）是近親：both grew from a Latin verb兩個字都源自一個拉丁動詞 that meant, at bottom, to listen那個動詞骨子裡的意思是「聽」。Over time隨著時間過去 they split兩個字分家了。

Obedience is doing what you are told. Obeisance is showing, often physically, that you accept someone’s higher place.

Obedience isobedience是 doing what you are told照別人說的去做。Obeisance is showingobeisance是表現出，often physically常常是用身體，that you accept someone’s higher place你接受某人地位比較高。

You can make obeisance to a person, and people also say pay obeisance to an idea or a tradition, meaning they treat it with that same yielding respect — sometimes a little sharply, as if the bow were too much.

You can make obeisance to a person你可以對一個人行obeisance，and people also say大家也會說 pay obeisance to an idea or a tradition對一個想法或傳統pay obeisance，meaning they treat it with that same yielding respect意思是用同樣那種俯首的敬意對待它——sometimes a little sharply, as if the bow were too much有時候語氣有點尖銳，好像那個鞠躬鞠得太過頭了。