picturesque

adjective pic·tur·esque \ ˌpik-chə-ˈresk \

Definition of picturesque

1 a : resembling a picture : suggesting a painted scene

b : charming or quaint in appearance

2 : evoking mental images : vivid

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picturesquely

adverb

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picturesqueness

noun

See picturesque defined for English-language learners

See picturesque defined for kids

Examples of picturesque in a Sentence

The view of the mountains was very picturesque.
wrote a picturesque tale of their journey across the country

Recent Examples of picturesque from the Web

The falls still cascade into the gorge, streaming under the picturesque Benson Bridge and toward the Columbia.

— jim ryan, The Seattle Times, "Saving Multnomah Lodge: ‘We didn’t want Oregon to lose that’," 18 Sep. 2017
In the Keys — a famed and picturesque tourist and fishing destination — the rough day was only starting.

— charles rabin and jenny staletovich, miamiherald, "Dangerous Irma makes landfall near Key West as surge threat rises," 10 Sep. 2017
Michelle MacLaren, whose frenetic, picturesque style came to define Breaking Bad, will direct The Deuce's first episode.

— matt patches, Esquire, "James Franco and the Creator of The Wire Double-Team HBO's '70s Porn Drama," 6 Aug. 2015
Director Simon Curtis bathes Billy, and the Milnes’ picture-perfect country house, in exquisitely picturesque, slanted sunlight; even the moon, on a perfectly quiet night, seems too lovely to be real.

— moira macdonald, kansascity, "The story of Pooh and his pal Christopher Robin | The Kansas City Star," 26 Oct. 2017
But now a new skirmish with ties to the Civil War is brewing in the county seat, a picturesque town of 5,200 founded in 1786 by George Washington’s youngest brother, Charles, that sits just 63 miles from the nation’s capital.

— joe heim, Washington Post, "Civil War’s legacy hangs over a plaque honoring Confederate soldiers," 16 Oct. 2017
On June 12, a preliminary hearing began in the Centre County Court of Common Pleas, in Bellefonte, a picturesque river town that earns its name.

— benjamin wallace, vanityfair.com, "How a Fatal Frat Hazing Became Penn State’s Latest Campus Crisis," 3 Oct. 2017
For two years in the early '70s, my grandfather traveled back and forth to St. John's, a picturesque town on Newfoundland island roughly 3,000 kilometers east of Toronto, as an engineer overseeing the construction of an energy plant.

— caleigh alleyne, Country Living, "Don't Put Off That Heritage Trip with Your Family," 29 Sep. 2017
The Cape Cod-style house, which was one of the first built along the picturesque Lake Jeanette Road in Greensboro, is very important to Kuester.

— heather finn, House Beautiful, "You Can Have This North Carolina Home for Free, Under One Condition," 7 June 2016

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'picturesque.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of picturesque

French & Italian; French pittoresque, from Italian pittoresco, from pittore painter, from Latin pictor, from pingere

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1703

See Words from the same year

picturesque Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of picturesque

graphic, vivid, picturesque mean giving a clear visual impression in words. graphic stresses the evoking of a clear lifelike picture.

- a graphic account of combat

vivid suggests an impressing on the mind of the vigorous aliveness of something.

- a vivid re-creation of an exciting event

picturesque suggests the presentation of a striking or effective picture composed of features notable for their distinctness and charm.

- a picturesque account of his travels

PICTURESQUE Defined for English Language Learners

picturesque

adjective

Definition of picturesque for English Language Learners

: very pretty or charming : like a painted picture
: telling about something in a way that makes it very easy to imagine : causing someone to have a very clear mental picture of something