lovely
Americanadjective
-
lovelier,
comparative
-
loveliest
superlative
-
charmingly or exquisitely beautiful.
a lovely flower.
-
having a beauty that appeals to the heart or mind as well as to the eye, as a person or a face.
-
delightful; highly pleasing.
to have a lovely time.
-
of a great moral or spiritual beauty.
a lovely character.
noun
-
lovelies
plural
-
Informal. a beautiful woman, especially a show girl.
-
any person or thing that is pleasing, highly satisfying, or the like.
Every car in the new line is a lovely.
adverb
adjective
-
very attractive or beautiful
-
highly pleasing or enjoyable
a lovely time
-
loving and attentive
-
inspiring love; lovable
noun
Usage
What are other ways to say lovely?
The adjective lovely describes people or things that are charmingly or exquisitely beautiful. How is it different from beautiful, handsome, and pretty? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of lovely
First recorded before 900; Middle English luvelich, Old English luflīc “amiable”; love + -ly
Explanation
You've probably heard the adjective lovely to describe something good looking, but did you know that, as a noun, lovely refers, specifically, to a beautiful girl employed as a photographer’s model? From the Old English luflic “affectionate, loveable,” comes lovely, an adjective that describes a person’s or thing’s attractiveness. Find the word love in there — it's something so attractive you can't help but love it. Lovely can also refer to something delightful. For example, a pretty selection of cakes and pastries arranged on a doily could be described as lovely. Anything from your girlfriend to a fresh coat of red paint on your motorcycle can be lovely.
Vocabulary lists containing lovely
Call of Beauty: Synonyms for "Beautiful"
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"Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
We never really feel like exercising, but we force ourselves, so we will drive to Beverly Hills and do the walking path along Santa Monica Boulevard, which is quite lovely.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
Which is a pretty lovely way for a party to end.
From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026
McClean responded that he had heard his brother, fellow Derry City player Patrick McClean, "on a call to a club psychologist, having a lovely chat".
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026
Maniscalco chimed in: "When we come here, surrounded by these lovely people who want the same things we do, it really gives us the energy to keep going."
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
Leah owned nice furniture and lovely clothes, but was somehow a month behind on the rent.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Fanny and Stella, middle-class lovelies in hoop skirts, engage in a warm embrace.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2025
Persimmons, grapefruit, kumquats and perhaps the most delectable and elusive of all the mandarins: the tiny, seedless kishus — all of these little lovelies thrive in our climate.
From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2023
Cool, dark conditions, like those found in an unheated basement, a garage or a shed, will lull your lovelies into dormancy and hold them there in relative suspended animation.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 13, 2021
“So happy Dedicated Side B is OUT! Thank you lovelies for the immense support already!” she exclaimed in a separate Instagram post.
From Fox News ● May 21, 2020
“Not terribly. They happened on a couple lovelies of their own. Not as lovely as yours, of course.”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
But the settings—sailboats, grottoes, caves, lush gardens, elegant townhouses—couldn’t be lovelier.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Barrymore also previously interviewed Armstrong on her US daytime TV show, The Drew Barrymore Show, saying the 12-year-old "could not have been lovelier".
From BBC ● Jan. 27, 2023
I was nervous, and she couldn't have been lovelier.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2022
It's quite a lovely spot, and Sharon is lovelier still, both inside and out.
From Salon ● May 8, 2022
“Three princesses, each lovelier than the last,” he told their father.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
Whether it’s “ba-dee-yah” or “ah-OOO-uh” or “na-na-na,” melding your voice with your neighbors’ can be the loveliest, most human experience around.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
The Los Angeles native’s cryptic social media presence is a gingerbread-crumb trail to the loveliest images you’ve never seen — but will, probably in your favorite magazine, in one to three months.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
The loveliest skyscraper, however, is in New York.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
Ben Dowell of The Times also awarded it five stars, describing Small Prophets as "the loveliest British comedy since Detectorists".
From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2026
He would pass the loveliest carelessly by, no matter how much she tried to make him look at her.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
