pretty 1 of 3

1
2
as in nice
giving pleasure or contentment to the mind or senses she was not a pretty sight after she fell off her horse and into the mud

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3

pretty

2 of 3

adverb

pretty

3 of 3

noun

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a pretty picture
a cute picture
a gorgeous picture
a beautiful picture
a lovely picture
a fabulous picture
a pretty place
a stunning place
a picturesque place
a scenic place
an aesthetic place
a gorgeous place
a pretty dress
a stylish dress
an adorable dress
a fabulous dress
a fashionable dress
a great dress
a pretty name
a lovely name
a neat name
a wonderful name
a pleasant name
a nice name

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective pretty differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of pretty are beautiful, comely, fair, handsome, and lovely. While all these words mean "exciting sensuous or aesthetic pleasure," pretty often applies to superficial or insubstantial attractiveness.

a painter of conventionally pretty scenes

When is beautiful a more appropriate choice than pretty?

The words beautiful and pretty can be used in similar contexts, but beautiful applies to whatever excites the keenest of pleasure to the senses and stirs emotion through the senses.

beautiful mountain scenery

How do comely and handsome relate to one another, in the sense of pretty?

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

the comely grace of a dancer

Where would fair be a reasonable alternative to pretty?

In some situations, the words fair and pretty are roughly equivalent. However, fair suggests beauty because of purity, flawlessness, or freshness.

fair of face

When might handsome be a better fit than pretty?

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

a handsome Georgian mansion

How are the words lovely and beautiful related as synonyms of pretty?

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

a lovely melody

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 pretty
Adjective
From Saturday, March 1, to Saturday, April 12, 2025 pretty Venus goes retrograde. Sophie Saint Thomas, Allure, 28 Feb. 2025 Aimée and Trintignant are movie-star pretty, but Lelouch’s style gives them both a weighty humanity, as do their performances. Carmel Dagan, Variety, 18 June 2024
Adverb
Namesake Home’s Emma dresser had the perfect measurements for our space, and that, along with its white finish and pretty pulls are what really sold us on the piece. Briana Feigon, Architectural Digest, 19 June 2025 Other stately pieces also fetched a pretty sum at the event, too. Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 18 June 2025
Noun
Popular along the Florida panhandle and pretty much anywhere the Gulf of Mexico laps the shores, this spread is usually served with a lemon wedge and not nearly enough crackers. Josh Miller, Southern Living, 27 June 2025 Promotion is in full swing for Squid Game 3, which has arrived pretty sharpish after Season 2. Max Goldbart, Deadline, 27 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for pretty
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretty
Adjective
  • The beautiful game has all too often been marred by unsavory incidents of bigotry.
    Hannah Ryan, CNN Money, 27 June 2025
  • The job was to find a photographer or find a model, pack a trunk of clothes and flit off to St. Moritz for a week and take beautiful pictures and come back.
    A Martínez, NPR, 27 June 2025
Adjective
  • Nevertheless, nice to get an explanation for why Vondrousova has been invisible.
    James Hansen, New York Times, 21 June 2025
  • Every single crewmember, everyone who worked on the show, along with the actors, every person on this show was so hard-working and dedicated and so genuinely nice.
    Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 20 June 2025
Adjective
  • This new moon is particularly suitable for projects or processes that have to do with your well-being, your home, your family, or your emotional balance.
    Danijela Pilic, Glamour, 24 June 2025
  • Consider timing: This approach may be suitable for startups with equity or roles that have clear growth trajectories but avoid it if unclear reporting structures exist.
    Caroline Castrillon, Forbes.com, 23 June 2025
Adverb
  • So far, the country's outbound shipments have held up relatively strong over the past two months, as exporters pivoted to alternative markets, notably Southeast Asian countries and European Union nations.
    Anniek Bao, CNBC, 1 July 2025
  • But at a price point just north of $500, that’s a relatively small gripe for an otherwise sound piece of equipment.
    Amy Wilkinson, SELF, 1 July 2025
Noun
  • David Hockney is a good looker.
    Dodie Kazanjian, Vogue, 1 Apr. 2025
  • New battery technology aside, the keyboard is quite a looker.
    Zackery Cuevas, PCMAG, 7 Jan. 2025
Adjective
  • With so many lovely fruits at our fingertips, there’s no reason to trifle with making a trifle this summer.
    Josh Miller, Southern Living, 28 June 2025
  • Jake looked back over a decade’s worth of Denis stating his desire to one day direct Bond and there is some lovely detail – the clues were there from the start.
    Max Goldbart, Deadline, 27 June 2025
Adjective
  • Using a real-life incarceration facility near Geelong in Victoria that had just opened (but wasn’t populated yet), Williams has a setting that’s sunny and modern, not inherently depressing if not exactly pleasant, either.
    Dennis Harvey, Variety, 20 June 2025
  • Her biggest piece of advice for creating a pleasant patio at your own home?
    Nicole Letts, Southern Living, 20 June 2025
Adjective
  • While 100 grams of protein might seem excessive, this amount is appropriate for many people.
    Jillian Kubala, Health, 23 June 2025
  • District officials insist that their use of arts money has been legal and appropriate.
    Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 23 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Pretty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretty. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.

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