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a beautiful day
a perfect day
a gorgeous day
a nice day
a pretty day
beautiful music
elegant music
pleasant music
pretty music
lovely music
wonderful music
beautiful eyes
amazing eyes
pretty eyes
beautiful scenery
picturesque scenery
pristine scenery
spectacular scenery
breathtaking scenery
exquisite scenery
a beautiful baby
an adorable baby
a cute baby
a precious baby
a lovely baby
a gorgeous baby

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective beautiful differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of beautiful are comely, fair, handsome, lovely, and pretty. While all these words mean "exciting sensuous or aesthetic pleasure," beautiful applies to whatever excites the keenest of pleasure to the senses and stirs emotion through the senses.

beautiful mountain scenery

How are the words comely and handsome related as synonyms of beautiful?

Comely is like handsome in suggesting what is coolly approved rather than emotionally responded to.

the comely grace of a dancer

When can fair be used instead of beautiful?

The words fair and beautiful are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, fair suggests beauty because of purity, flawlessness, or freshness.

fair of face

When could handsome be used to replace beautiful?

While in some cases nearly identical to beautiful, handsome suggests aesthetic pleasure due to proportion, symmetry, or elegance.

a handsome Georgian mansion

How do lovely and beautiful relate to one another?

Lovely is close to beautiful but applies to a narrower range of emotional excitation in suggesting the graceful, delicate, or exquisite.

a lovely melody

In what contexts can pretty take the place of beautiful?

The words pretty and beautiful can be used in similar contexts, but pretty often applies to superficial or insubstantial attractiveness.

a painter of conventionally pretty scenes

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of beautiful When will Trump's 'big, beautiful' bill go into effect? Diana Leyva, The Tennessean, 8 July 2025 Until then, the MIT Museum will remain a beautiful shell with very little inside. Amir Husain, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025 In Brooklyn, there was a full house at the beautiful opera-house-like Roulette space. Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 27 June 2025 Drivers and passengers will observe all the lights of the beautiful town from their vehicles. Katie Black, Charlotte Observer, 27 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for beautiful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for beautiful
Adjective
  • Amazon This picture book from Chronicle Books is a favorite at WIRED for its lovely images and engaging story of environmental scientist Ken Nedimeyer, whose passion for marine biology, particularly coral, led him to found the Coral Restoration Foundation.
    Simon Hill, Wired News, 10 July 2025
  • This jar candle has a lovely fragrance reminiscent of a tropical island, featuring citrus, florals and vanilla elements.
    BestReviews, Mercury News, 10 July 2025
Adjective
  • Colleagues, mentors and friends are wonderful sources of feedback.
    Kim Salem-Jackson, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025
  • Favorite collections: Dior, Willy Chavarria, Craig Green, Lemaire and Officine Générale Best show format: The glorious city of Paris and its surroundings were on wonderful display this show season.
    Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 30 June 2025
Adjective
  • On top of the pocket perk, the prints of this high-waist maxi skirt are gorgeous, with pretty florals, geometric designs, and solid colors.
    Chaunie Brusie, Parents, 4 July 2025
  • This crossbody phone case is made from genuine leather and has gorgeous gold accents.
    BestReviews, Mercury News, 4 July 2025
Adjective
  • The hiding spot seemed like an excellent spot for avoiding the sun and potential predators, but Fowler didn't feel quite the same.
    Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 July 2025
  • Performance has also been excellent so far compared to peers and a benchmark index.
    Jesse Pound, CNBC, 11 July 2025
Adjective
  • Oh, and the best pairs of the bunch are also plain old comfy (and cute, in a gorpcore kind of way).
    Sara Coughlin, SELF, 7 July 2025
  • July 6, 2025: Rodman watching Shelton’s match at Wimbledon is so cute the ESPN announcer literally giggles trying to talk about them.
    Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 7 July 2025
Adjective
  • Grow by leaving awesome LinkedIn comments Identify your strongest beliefs Your commenting strategy needs a theme.
    Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 2 July 2025
  • This role was really an opportunity to foreground your sexuality and have this awesome love story with Gabin (Ivan du Pontavice).
    Maureen Lee Lenker Published, EW.com, 30 June 2025
Adjective
  • Night Light® is a handsome, compact variety, producing radiant golden foliage that takes on bronze and chartreuse hues in winter.
    Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 4 July 2025
  • The main building for what is now the Austin State Hospital is a handsome neoclassical structure designed for the asylum that chartered in 1856.
    Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 4 July 2025
Adjective
  • So those were all fabulous projects, and then basically Hacks.
    H. Alan Scott, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 July 2025
  • With deep discounts on fabulous and functional travel bags, Target Circle Week is a must-shop event.
    Destinee Scott, Travel + Leisure, 9 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Beautiful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/beautiful. Accessed 16 Jul. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on beautiful

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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