stately
Americanadjective
-
majestic; imposing in magnificence, elegance, etc..
a stately home.
adverb
adjective
adverb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of stately
First recorded in 1350–1400, stately is from the Middle English word statly. See state, -ly
Explanation
To be stately is to appear noble and impressive, almost in a larger than life kind of way. You may encounter a stately gentleman or a stately statue. If you do, take a little bow. There are a few meanings of stately, but they both refer to people and things that have an impressive bearing. The first meaning has to do with nobility and class. A ceremony honoring a prince is stately, and the music and dress surrounding such events are stately. Stately things convey sophistication and regality. Also, stately can mean statuesque. Someone with great posture and an impressive physique is stately, almost as if they were made by a sculptor.
Vocabulary lists containing stately
"The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe
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An "August" Assortment: Words Worthy of Honor
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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:
Created by master designers such as Lancelot "Capability" Brown and William Kent, the gardens of stately homes such as Hampton Court, Blenheim Palace, and Chatsworth House are among England's top visitor attractions.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
After the deaths of their parents, the aging bluebloods holed up in their stately Harlem rowhouse, once a picture of Gilded Age polish, and became a public curiosity.
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
It was at a stately red brick building, known as 443 Greenwich, with oversized curved windows and a Tribeca address.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
The book also compared the UK to a "rambling stately home" in which the power was only on in some rooms.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
He spoke a stately English without ever using the letter R. When the tong wars were going on in California, it happened now and then that Lee found a price on his head.
From "Cannery Row" by John Steinbeck
Tharp’s “In the Room” was sheer exuberance, Nearly four decades later, Tharp hardly seems to have slowed down her dance, but ”Aquas” does have a statelier sheen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 14, 2025
Then the crowd was asked to move out of the way as new paths were cut, and the women’s wear appeared at a steadier, statelier pace.
From New York Times ● Mar. 11, 2022
The statelier English verse occupies its space comfortably.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 30, 2012
He put them on the runway at the Jeu de Paume — a contemporary art museum and one of this city’s statelier locations for a fashion show.
From Washington Post
The Wards were soon to leave it for a statelier dwelling, but many associations would always cling about the old house.
From Julia Ward Howe 1819-1910 by Maud Howe Elliott
It supplanted some of the city’s stateliest mansions with corporate palaces in blue glass and bronze.
From New York Times ● Apr. 22, 2020
Alfred, Lord Tennyson, called the result “the stateliest measure ever moulded by the lips of man.”
From The New Yorker ● Oct. 8, 2018
Indian Village is an historic development just to the west of the neighborhood, and it includes some of the largest, stateliest residences in the city.
From BusinessWeek ● Sep. 2, 2014
“The monument is appalling—in bad taste and in a very strategic position,” on Mexico City's stateliest avenue, near statues of Gandhi and Winston Churchill.
From Slate ● Jan. 30, 2013
"There is only one Master," said the Bishop, in his stateliest manner.
From The Pastor's Wife by Elizabeth von Arnim
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.
