lovelier; loveliest
1
: delightful for beauty, harmony, or grace : attractive
She looks lovely in that dress.
3
: eliciting love by moral or ideal worth
A lovely woman who loves him for himself, not for his money.
4
obsolete
: lovable
Synonyms
Adjective
- A-OK
- A1
- awesome
- bang-up
- banner
- beautiful
- blue-chip
- blue-ribbon
- boffo
- bonny [chiefly British]
- bonnie
- boss [slang]
- brag
- brave
- bully
- bumper
- capital
- choice
- classic
- cool [slang]
- corking
- crackerjack
- cracking
- dandy
- divine
- dope [slang]
- down [slang]
- dynamite
- excellent
- fab
- fabulous
- famous
- fantabulous [slang]
- fantastic
- fine
- first-class
- first-rate
- first-string
- five-star
- four-star
- frontline
- gangbusters
- gangbuster
- gilt-edged
- gilt-edge
- gone [slang]
- grand
- great
- groovy
- heavenly
- high-class
- hot
- hype [slang]
- immense
- jim-dandy
- keen
- marvelous
- marvellous
- mean
- neat
- nifty
- noble
- number one
- No. 1
- numero uno
- out-of-sight [slang]
- par excellence
- peachy
- peachy keen
- phat [slang]
- prime
- primo [slang]
- prize
- prizewinning
- quality
- radical [slang]
- righteous [slang]
- sensational
- slick
- splendid
- stellar
- sterling
- superb
- superior
- superlative
- supernal
- swell
- terrific
- tip-top
- top
- top-notch
- top-of-the-line
- top-shelf
- topflight
- topping [chiefly British]
- unsurpassed
- wizard [chiefly British]
- wonderful
Examples of lovely in a Sentence
Adjective
She was wearing a lovely dress.
a lovely bouquet of flowers
The song has a lovely melody.
The hotel has a lovely view.
We enjoyed a lovely dinner.
a singer with a lovely voice
Their children have lovely manners.
How lovely of you to come!
It was lovely to have you here!
Noun
A chorus line of young lovelies danced on the stage.
Recent Examples on the Web
Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 25 Apr. 2024
One exception to the movie’s overall restraint is perhaps Andrew Simon McAllister’s lovely yet heavy-handedly sentimental score.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 25 Apr. 2024
In 2023 my now ex-husband posted a lovely tribute to our first anniversary on Instagram.
—Sophia Bush, Glamour, 25 Apr. 2024
Lifestyle 11 invigorating solo date ideas to craft a lovely L.A. day
Feb. 26, 2024
Actor and event producer DeShawn Cavanaugh says L.A. Chess Club is helping to meet the growing need for fresh social spaces beyond the typical nightlife scene.
—Martine Thompson, Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2024
And there is the utterly sad and lovely scene towards the end where Yabushige prepares for seppuku before Toranaga, but first requests the indulgence of hearing more about exactly how his lord managed to outmaneuver Ishido and his allies.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 24 Apr. 2024
The holiday season is lovely, but a white Christmas is increasingly rare.
—Elizabeth Warkentin, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2024
The songs are squeezed too — a shame because many are lovely.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024
There’s nothing so lovely as a prolonged vanishing.
—Rae Armantrout, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
Matt Thompson, Spin, 10 Sep. 2023
Serve these layered lovelies in old-fashioned glasses to make the treat extra special.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 July 2023
The first flowering of the reblooming variety of these perennial lovelies is in June.
—Erynn Hassinger, Country Living, 22 Apr. 2023
No, Colin Frissell hooking up with the three lovelies in Wisconsin.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 10 Dec. 2019
The vegetables: Along with the summer lovelies mentioned above, some people get all crazy and put mushrooms in their ratatouille.
—James P. Dewan, chicagotribune.com, 13 Aug. 2019
Here are some of the lovelies that were arrested recently -- the Berkeley deal.
—Fox News, 29 Aug. 2018
Scott Rubin was asked to write jokes for National Lampoon’s Strip Poker, a witless pay-per-view series featuring Kaelin and a group of lovelies (including Olivia Munn, then known as Lisa) at the Hedonism II nudist resort in Jamaica.
—Benjamin Wallace, HWD, 1 May 2017
The Observer resolved then and there to award these two lovelies his first Mellow MoonPie award, for grit and glimmer in the face of death.
—The Masked Observer, AL.com, 31 Jan. 2018
Adjective
Carell’s wallflower earns our sympathy, and his quiet moments with Pill (an affecting standout) are genuinely lovely.
—Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 25 Apr. 2024
One exception to the movie’s overall restraint is perhaps Andrew Simon McAllister’s lovely yet heavy-handedly sentimental score.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 25 Apr. 2024
In 2023 my now ex-husband posted a lovely tribute to our first anniversary on Instagram.
—Sophia Bush, Glamour, 25 Apr. 2024
Lifestyle 11 invigorating solo date ideas to craft a lovely L.A. day
Feb. 26, 2024
Actor and event producer DeShawn Cavanaugh says L.A. Chess Club is helping to meet the growing need for fresh social spaces beyond the typical nightlife scene.
—Martine Thompson, Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2024
And there is the utterly sad and lovely scene towards the end where Yabushige prepares for seppuku before Toranaga, but first requests the indulgence of hearing more about exactly how his lord managed to outmaneuver Ishido and his allies.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 24 Apr. 2024
The holiday season is lovely, but a white Christmas is increasingly rare.
—Elizabeth Warkentin, Travel + Leisure, 15 Apr. 2024
The songs are squeezed too — a shame because many are lovely.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024
There’s nothing so lovely as a prolonged vanishing.
—Rae Armantrout, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
Noun
But don’t despair, my scarred and scarring lovelies.
—Matt Thompson, Spin, 10 Sep. 2023
Serve these layered lovelies in old-fashioned glasses to make the treat extra special.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 July 2023
The first flowering of the reblooming variety of these perennial lovelies is in June.
—Erynn Hassinger, Country Living, 22 Apr. 2023
No, Colin Frissell hooking up with the three lovelies in Wisconsin.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 10 Dec. 2019
The vegetables: Along with the summer lovelies mentioned above, some people get all crazy and put mushrooms in their ratatouille.
—James P. Dewan, chicagotribune.com, 13 Aug. 2019
Here are some of the lovelies that were arrested recently -- the Berkeley deal.
—Fox News, 29 Aug. 2018
Scott Rubin was asked to write jokes for National Lampoon’s Strip Poker, a witless pay-per-view series featuring Kaelin and a group of lovelies (including Olivia Munn, then known as Lisa) at the Hedonism II nudist resort in Jamaica.
—Benjamin Wallace, HWD, 1 May 2017
The Observer resolved then and there to award these two lovelies his first Mellow MoonPie award, for grit and glimmer in the face of death.
—The Masked Observer, AL.com, 31 Jan. 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lovely.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near lovely
Cite this Entry
“Lovely.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lovely. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
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