adjective
-
resembling a pearl, esp in lustre
-
of the colour pearl; pale bluish-grey
-
decorated with pearls or mother-of-pearl
noun
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a London costermonger who wears on ceremonial occasions a traditional dress of dark clothes covered with pearl buttons
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(plural) the clothes or the buttons themselves
Other Word Forms
- pearliness noun
Etymology
Origin of pearly
First recorded in 1400–50, pearly is from the late Middle English word peerly. See pearl, -y 1
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.
She asked me how my daddy made it to the pearly gates of heaven.
From Literature
She smiled hugely, baring her pearly white teeth in what could only be called a wolfish grin.
From Literature
Wood, whose pearly whites and “White Lotus” character were mocked, said in a since-expired Instagram story that she found the bit “mean and unfunny.”
From Los Angeles Times
While many species can regenerate their teeth, human beings only get one chance at growing a healthy set of adult pearly whites.
From BBC
“For example, when you look at oyster shells, they have an iridescence of pearly green and blue, and that’s definitely from minerals like copper,” she says.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
