attractive

adjective

at·​trac·​tive ə-ˈtrak-tiv 

1

a

: arousing interest or pleasure : charming

an attractive smile

b

: appealing

an attractive offer

2

: having or relating to the power to attract

attractive forces between molecules

attractively adverb

attractiveness noun

Synonyms of attractive

• beautiful
• handsome
• cute
• lovely
• gorgeous
• pretty
• charming
• good
• stunning
• elegant

Examples of attractive in a Sentence

An attractive woman greeted us at the door.

The camera has many attractive features at a very attractive price.

Recent Examples on the Web

Surrounded by vast desert, the long and windy road that leads to Nancy Guthrie’s home in the Catalina Foothills is dotted with prickly cacti and attractive houses. —Amanda Musa, CNN Money, 4 Feb. 2026

Deutsche Bank reiterates Chipotle as buy The firm says Chipotle remains too attractive to ignore following earnings on Tuesday. —Michael Bloom, CNBC, 4 Feb. 2026

The boyhood Palace fan’s physical profile was attractive, not least his ability to clear the ball from set-pieces — Palace have been particularly fragile in that regard of late. —Matt Woosnam, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026

Making room for apartments, Culver's Cypress has made other improvements, including public art, additional landscaping, upgraded lighting and new walkways to make Bayshore more attractive and easier to navigate on foot. —Tom Daykin, jsonline.com, 4 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English attractif, attractive "drawing out foreign matter from the body, able to ingest nutriments," borrowed from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French attractif, attratif, borrowed from Late Latin attractīvus "capable of attracting, drawing toward itself," from Latin attractus, past participle of attrahere "to draw with force, compel to come" + -īvus -ive — more at attract

First Known Use

circa 1540, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for attractive

• contractive
• extractive
• inactive
• proactive
• reactive
• refractive
• subtractive
• active
• tractive
• bioactive
• hyperactive
• interactive

Kids Definition

attractive

adjective

at·​trac·​tive ə-ˈtrak-tiv 

: having the power or quality of attracting

especially : charming, pleasing

attractively adverb

attractiveness noun