cute

¹cute

adjective \ˈkyüt\

cut·ercut·est

Definition of CUTE

1

a : clever or shrewd often in an underhanded manner

b : impertinent, smart-alecky <don't get cute with me>

2

: attractive or pretty especially in a childish, youthful, or delicate way

3

: obviously straining for effect

— cute·ly adverb

— cute·ness noun

Examples of CUTE

1. <she's very nice, but she's not afraid to get cute when there's something she wants>
2. <we're having a serious discussion here, so cut the cute remarks>

Origin of CUTE

short for acute

First Known Use: circa 1731

Related to CUTE

Synonyms

beguiling, cagey (also cagy), crafty, cunning, artful, designing, devious, dodgy [chiefly British], foxy, guileful, scheming, shrewd, slick, sly, subtle, tricky, wily

Antonyms

artless, guileless, ingenuous, innocent, undesigning

Related Words

astute, facile, glib, sharp; crooked, deceitful, deceptive, dishonest, fraudulent, insinuating, knavish, Machiavellian, oblique, serpentine, shady, shifty, slippery, sneaky, treacherous, underhand, underhanded, unscrupulous; backhanded, double-dealing, hypocritical, insincere, left-handed, mealy, mealymouthed, smooth-tongued, two-faced; circuitous, circular, roundabout; clandestine, concealed, covert, furtive, hugger-mugger, secret, stealthy, surreptitious, undercover; calculating, plotting

Near Antonyms

obvious, open, patent, plain, public, unconcealed; aboveboard, candid, direct, forthright, frank, honest, natural, outspoken, plainspoken, real, simple, sincere, straightforward, unaffected, unpretending, unpretentious, unvarnished; childlike, impressionable, simpleminded, unsophisticated, unworldly; unforced, unstudied; trustful, trusting

Rhymes with CUTE

boot, bruit, brut, brute, bute, Bute, butte, chute, cloot, coot, flute, fruit, glout, glute, hoot, jute, Jute, loot, lute, moot, mute, newt, pood, root, Root, rout, route, scoot, scute, shoot, snoot, soot, suit, suite, toot, tout, ut, Ute

²cute

noun

Definition of CUTE

: the quality or state of being cute or cutesy; also : an instance of cuteness or cutesiness —usually used in plural <a movie suffering from a case of the cutes>

First Known Use of CUTE

1965