belle

noun

ˈbel 

: a popular and attractive girl or woman

especially : a girl or woman whose charm and beauty make her a favorite

the belle of the ball

Examples of belle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Someone’s ending up 5-1 and an early belle of the NFL ball after this one. — Luca Evans, Denver Post, 10 Oct. 2025

In a market with a ton of teams with money to spend and not an abundance of high-level talent to spend it on, the no-frills Linderbaum could soon become the belle of the free-agent ball. — Jeff Zrebiec, New York Times, 24 Feb. 2026

Presenter Nikki Glaser was giving belle of the ball vibes in this pleated, pale pink Zuhair Murad gown and David Yurman jewelry. — Jackie Fields, PEOPLE, 12 Jan. 2026

Our belle of the barbecue is a citrusy take on an American classic—beer-can chicken—with an ode to mojo criollo, a marinade traditionally made with bitter sour oranges, warm spices, and a heavy hand of garlic. — Inés Anguiano, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

French, from feminine of beau beautiful — more at beau

First Known Use

1622, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing belle

• belle epoque
• belle-lettrist
• belle-lettristic
• the belle of the ball

Rhymes for belle

• bel
• cel
• cell
• dell
• dwell
• el
• ell
• fel
• fell
• gel
• gell
• jell

Kids Definition

belle

noun

ˈbel 

: a popular attractive girl or woman

Etymology

French belle "a beautiful girl," from belle (adjective), feminine form of beau "beautiful," from Latin bellus "pretty" — related to beau, beauty