/ˈkɔː.vi.ən/
adjective · etym: noemic-latinate · corvus (crow, raven) + -ian · cf. corvid
resembling a polite, knowing bird.
a corvian glance is brief and accurate. a corvian visitor stands at the threshold with a small, considered tilt of the head and waits to be acknowledged. a corvian sentence pretends not to know more than it does. some custodians are corvian; certainly the librarian would be, if one were ever appointed.
the corvian manner is courteous in a way that admits of judgement. one is not being assessed exactly, but one is being noticed in detail. compare plinthly, which is a related kind of self-possession, and the plaintice a corvian neighbour often practises without comment.
in a sentence: "the bookseller was corvian; she knew already what i had come for and waited to see if i would name it."