What does "pretty" mean?
A pretty person; a term of address to a pretty person.
Pretty
/ˈprɪʈi/ adj, adv, name, noun, verb
adj, adv, name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A pretty person; a term of address to a pretty person.
- Grammar: pretty is listed as adj, adv, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: a bit, a little, acceptably, adequately.
- Useful contrasts: ugly, barely, completely.
- Usage evidence: "This looks pretty interesting," Hiroshi says.
How to use "pretty"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "pretty" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "pretty" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "pretty" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "pretty" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "pretty" is acting as adj, adv, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "a bit" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "pretty", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A pretty person; a term of address to a pretty person.
"I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!"
- 2 Something that is pretty.
"We'll stop at the knife store and look at the sharp pretties."
Verb
- 1 To make pretty; to beautify
"He sat on the hearth rug and began prettying the dog's coat."
Adjective
- 1 Pleasant to the sight or other senses; attractive, especially of women or children.
"Having brought it to a close, he took his way to the Kursaal. The great German watering-place is one of the prettiest nooks in Europe, and of a summer evening in the gaming days, five-and-twenty years ago, it was one of the most brilliant scenes."
- 2 Of objects or things: nice-looking, appealing.
"Some fans may have mistaken the album’s floatiness for aimlessness, but Mr. Mercer’s songs have never been sneakier, or prettier."
- 3 Fine-looking; only superficially attractive; initially appealing but having little substance; see petty. derogatory, often
"Damned by the Socialists as "traitors to the working class," its leaders were decried by Tories as "faceless peddlers of politics with a pretty little trinket for every taste.""
- 4 Effeminate. UK, derogatory, sometimes
- 5 Cunning; clever, skilful.
"In the end, however, it was a very pretty shot, right across the chasm; killed first fire, and the brute fell headlong into the brook […]."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 Moderately large; considerable. dated
"they flung all the goods in the house out at the windows into the street, or into the sea, as they supposed; thus they continued mad a pretty season […]."
- 7 Excellent, commendable, pleasing; fitting or proper (of actions, thoughts etc.). dated
"Some people are surprised, I believe, that that the eldest was not [named after his father], but Isabella would have him named Henry, which I thought very pretty of her."
- 8 Awkward, unpleasant, bad. ironic
""Nay, not I; it is a pretty thing to expect me to wash them; you may take them back again, and say, as Sally had them before, she may wash them now, for me; I am not going to be 'Jack at a pinch,' I can tell you.""
- 9 Matching commonly accepted principles of formatting and syntax, for the sake of readability.
Adjective
- 1 pleasing by delicacy or grace; not imposing wordnet
- 2 (used ironically) unexpectedly bad wordnet
Adverb
- 1 Somewhat, fairly, quite; sometimes also (by meiosis) very. not-comparable
"They are proud, and vveare their hayre pretty long, and about their criſpes vvreath a valuable Shaſh or Tulipant; […]"
- 2 Prettily, in a pretty manner. dialectal, not-comparable
"'The boy sings pretty, don't he, Master Marner?'"
Adverb
- 1 to certain extent or degree wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
- 2 Alternative form of Preeti; A female given name from Sanskrit. alt-of, alternative
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
""This looks pretty interesting," Hiroshi says."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "pretty"?
Common synonyms include: a bit, a little, acceptably, adequately, adroit, aesthetic.
How do you use "pretty" in a sentence?
"This looks pretty interesting," Hiroshi says.
How do you pronounce "pretty"?
Pronounced /ˈprɪʈi/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English prety, preti, praty, prati, from Old English prættiġ (“tricky, crafty, sly, cunning, wily, astute”), from Proto-West Germanic *prattug, from Proto-Germanic *prattugaz (“boastful, sly, slick, deceitful, tricky, cunning”), corresponding to prat (“trick”) + -y. Doublet of pratty. Cognate with Dutch prettig (“nice, pleasant”), Low German prettig (“funny”), Icelandic prettugur (“deceitful, tricky”). For the semantic development, compare canny, clever, cute.
Etymology 2
From Sanskrit प्रीति (prīti).