pretty
Americanadjective
-
prettier,
comparative
-
prettiest
superlative
-
pleasing or attractive to the eye, as by delicacy or gracefulness.
a pretty face.
- Synonyms:
- attractive
- Antonyms:
- ugly
-
(of things, places, etc.) pleasing to the eye, especially without grandeur.
- Synonyms:
- pleasant
-
pleasing to the ear.
a pretty tune.
- Synonyms:
- pleasant
-
pleasing to the mind or aesthetic taste.
He writes pretty little stories.
- Synonyms:
- pleasant
-
(often used ironically) fine; grand.
This is a pretty mess!
-
Informal. considerable; fairly great.
This accident will cost him a pretty sum.
-
Archaic or Scot. brave; hardy.
noun
-
pretties
plural
-
Usually pretties. pretty ornaments, clothes, etc.
-
a pretty person.
Sit down, my pretty.
adverb
-
fairly or moderately.
Her work was pretty good.
- Synonyms:
- somewhat
-
quite; very.
The wind blew pretty hard.
-
Informal. prettily.
verb (used with object)
-
pretties,
present (3rd person singular)
-
prettied,
past participle, past
-
prettying
present participle
idioms
adjective
-
pleasing or appealing in a delicate or graceful way
-
dainty, neat, or charming
-
commendable; good of its kind
he replied with a pretty wit
-
informal excellent, grand, or fine
here's a pretty mess!
-
informal lacking in masculinity; effeminate; foppish
-
vigorous or brave
-
an archaic word for elegant
-
informal a large sum of money
-
informal well placed or established financially, socially, etc
noun
adverb
-
informal fairly or moderately; somewhat
-
informal quite or very
verb
Usage
The qualifying adverb pretty, meaning “fairly or moderately” has been in general use since the late 16th century. Although most common in informal speech and writing, it is far from restricted to them, and often is less stilted than alternatives such as relatively, moderately, and quite.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
prettinessnoun
-
unprettinessnoun
-
prettyishadjective
-
unprettyadjective
-
prettilyadverb
-
unprettilyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
prettysimple
-
prettiessimple
-
have prettiedperfect
-
has prettiedperfect
-
am prettyingprogressive
-
are prettyingprogressive
-
is prettyingprogressive
-
have been prettyingperfect progressive
-
has been prettyingperfect progressive
Past
-
prettiedsimple
-
had prettiedperfect
-
was prettyingprogressive
-
were prettyingprogressive
-
had been prettyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pretty
First recorded before 1000; Middle English prati(e), pratte, prettie “cunning, gallant, fine, handsome, pretty”; Old English prættig, prettī “cunning,” derivative of prǣtt “a trick, wile”; cognate with Dutch part, pret “trick, prank,” Old Norse prettr “trick,” prettugr “tricky”
Explanation
Use the word pretty to describe something with a delicate and pleasant appearance. Something that’s pretty is less powerful and intimidating than something that’s beautiful, the way a pretty floral raincoat is less intimidating than a beautiful film star. The adjective pretty describes things that look nice, but it can also be used jokingly to say that something’s bad. If you say, “That’s a pretty mess you got me into!” that means it’s a bad mess. Pretty has an adverb form that means something is present to a moderate degree, another way to say fairly. You might be pretty sure you’ll be done studying by 9:00. That means you’re fairly certain but not positive.
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:
“The only way I know that is it doesn’t get like a gazillion views, but I’m in the Daily Mail and Page Six pretty much every two weeks,” she noted.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
“FDA is usually pretty conservative in terms of what warnings are worth mentioning in the label,” said Dr. Aaron S. Kesselheim, a Harvard Medical School professor who studies FDA regulation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
They were not always pretty to watch but they were ferociously hard to beat.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
“There’s a certain old-school kind of toughness, there’s a professionalism and a maturity level with this kid that’s pretty unique for his age,” Riley said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
My heart stutters, jumps around in concert with my butterflies, but I’m pretty sure they’re the good kind.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Squadrons of hair-metal pretties followed the new-wave glamourpusses, and even paragon-of-rock-virtue Bruce Springsteen had to wiggle his bum for pop culture’s new star-making machine.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2021
I mean, it’s at that point you want to say, “Hello, my pretties, soon you too will be wearing the burgundy lipstick.”
From Slate ● Jan. 24, 2018
For $18.50, these twinned pretties seem just right.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 13, 2016
Last week, Kane’s hometown newspaper, the Times-Tribune of Scranton, ran a Halloween-theme cartoon of her as a witch saying: “I’ll get you my pretties … and your filthy emails too.”
From Washington Times ● Nov. 5, 2015
Dr. Cable would never come here now, and no one could ever take her away from David or the Smoke, or do to Tally’s brain whatever the operation did to pretties’.
From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld
That has led some developers to hope that a prettier wrapper can help.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
Left with no idea how to wrap itself up, “Undertone” throws every one of those horror tropes under a hydraulic press, shoving them together, hoping that the result will be prettier than just polished garbage.
From Salon ● Mar. 15, 2026
"I think my creativity has increased during the war. I'm constantly stressed and end up building prettier homes in the game," she said.
From BBC ● Mar. 11, 2026
Now it’s an endless scroll of people who appear richer, prettier, more successful.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 21, 2026
Laura grabbed the biggest chip, and Mary said: “I don’t care. Aunt Lotty likes my hair best, anyway. Golden hair is lots prettier than brown.”
From "Little House in the Big Woods" by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Using the descriptive phrasing that was common then among older people, she said, “That is the prettiest little girl I have ever seen.”
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
"That's the prettiest song I ever heard," Wagoner cried when he first heard it, her website says.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
The prettiest team at the tournament was learning to win ugly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
Once made, it is a beautiful shade of pink, dotted throughout with colorful fruits and berries, so serve it in your prettiest bowl because it brings plenty of visual appeal.
From Salon ● Apr. 13, 2026
She’s the prettiest girl at Miss Preston’s, and I figure that’s as good a reason as any to hate her.
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
Tchotchkes gifted by grateful clients prettied the pink cabinets and pink walls.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
There are parts of Kentucky where the ground is pruned and prettied, and there are parts where the grass just grows.
From New York Times ● Sep. 6, 2023
Miss Shirley doesn’t usually mind all the ruckus on her Southwest Washington street corner, which was recently prettied up with a sprawling, candy-colored mural of a lotus blossom and a child.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 31, 2022
They are prettied up, to be sure – they are not the oligarchy as it is, but as it would like to see itself.
From The Guardian ● Dec. 2, 2018
Aunt Loma’s face prettied with pleasure at the compliment.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Kate, for her large part, is not satisfied to be "a plastic doll,…. a male-created bland and standard wife whose only job is prettying the prince" and to "produce an heir — and spare."
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2017
If your partner isn’t willing to embrace these incidents, you’re probably going to feel prettying alone in addressing them.
From Salon ● Dec. 20, 2015
But there’s not way of prettying up the squalid truth: “My legendary girlfriend, she is crying tonight / Oh no, she doesn’t feel right / She’s got no one to hold.”
From The Guardian ● Jun. 24, 2015
But these women are not ornamental, prettying up the scenery.
From New York Times ● Dec. 21, 2010
As the nomad tribe passed from place to place with its goats, its sheep, its camels, Johnny with his sons and grandsons would take to prettying up the camp sites a bit.
From Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Thirty-Seventh Annual Report Wooster, Ohio, September 3, 4, 5, 1946 by Northern Nut Growers Association
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.
