1
as in dude
a man extremely interested in his clothing and personal appearance
a downtown dance club with lots of pretty boys in attendance
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stud
a physically attractive man
as a musical performer, he has yet to prove that he's more than just another pretty boy
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pretty boy
At Hartford Stage, Rafael Jordan plays Sterling as a smooth-talking pretty boy who seems unwilling to get his hands dirty.
—
Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 4 Feb. 2025
Scott’s Tom Ripley was a clean break from that of Matt Damon; instead of a petulant pretty boy seized by envy and lust, this Ripley was older (Scott is in his late forties) and scarier, a lonesome manipulator with a murderous gleam in his eye.
—Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
How to adopt: Interested adopters can meet pretty boy Pepper at the Arizona Humane Society’s South Mountain location.
—The Republic, The Arizona Republic, 21 Jan. 2023
John Boyega plays Dahomey’s young king, Ghezo, a benevolent if somewhat pretty boy leader who takes on soft diplomacy while deploying his Agojie to collect the heads of his enemies.
—Tribune News Service, cleveland, 16 Sep. 2022
Austin Butler’s version of Elvis is a sulky pretty boy with smokey-eye makeup, loud silk shirts, and lips the color and texture of bubblegum.
—Katie Rife, Vulture, 24 June 2022
To compare his 1955 Newman, a pretty boy whose smile is a quick squiggle, with the Newman of 2002, his features still handsome but etched by the passage of a half-century, is an epitome in two drawings of Hirschfeld’s art.
—Terry Teachout, WSJ, 6 Apr. 2021
Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 4 Feb. 2025
Scott’s Tom Ripley was a clean break from that of Matt Damon; instead of a petulant pretty boy seized by envy and lust, this Ripley was older (Scott is in his late forties) and scarier, a lonesome manipulator with a murderous gleam in his eye.
—Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
How to adopt: Interested adopters can meet pretty boy Pepper at the Arizona Humane Society’s South Mountain location.
—The Republic, The Arizona Republic, 21 Jan. 2023
John Boyega plays Dahomey’s young king, Ghezo, a benevolent if somewhat pretty boy leader who takes on soft diplomacy while deploying his Agojie to collect the heads of his enemies.
—Tribune News Service, cleveland, 16 Sep. 2022
Austin Butler’s version of Elvis is a sulky pretty boy with smokey-eye makeup, loud silk shirts, and lips the color and texture of bubblegum.
—Katie Rife, Vulture, 24 June 2022
To compare his 1955 Newman, a pretty boy whose smile is a quick squiggle, with the Newman of 2002, his features still handsome but etched by the passage of a half-century, is an epitome in two drawings of Hirschfeld’s art.
—Terry Teachout, WSJ, 6 Apr. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretty boy
Noun
-
Plenty of people, critics or otherwise, weighed in online, often piling on about their distaste for a perfectly adequate, somewhat imperfect, modestly ambitious thriller that’s mostly about a very intense dude trying to protect his adult children.—
David Bloom,
Forbes.com,
30 Aug. 2025
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But in college football’s hottest early-season matchup, the Carlsbad dude was California cool.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
30 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Some of her favorite pieces are the decorative pillows and the bathroom sink, which includes a tiny beaded drain stopper and earring studs as faucets.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Sep. 2025
-
Every level of the Irish’s defense has certified studs, with a slew of shutdown corners and a defensive line with a seemingly endless supply of quality players.—
Terence Moore,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Travis Kelce’s podcast and later becoming engaged to her beau of two years.—
Toni Fitzgerald,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Then Emily Simpson suggests a game to cheer up Shannon Storms Beador’s daughter Sophie, who came home from New York City for the weekend after being dumped by a beau.—
Peter Larsen,
Oc Register,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Gabby dislikes Sebastian, perceiving him as an entitled womanizer.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
28 Aug. 2025
-
Following her performances as southern womanizer Jamie in Drive-Away Dolls and fearless private detective Honey O’Donahue in Honey Don’t!—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
The original dandy—most famously embodied by figures like Beau Brummell in 18th-century Britain—was a man whose primary purpose was to stand out by being impeccably groomed and dressed.—
Ty Gaskins,
Vogue,
29 Apr. 2025
-
Buy the Book From Beau Brummell to Emily Adams Bode, The Men’s Fashion Book documents over 200 years of fashion history by spotlighting the people and brands that have shaped the world of menswear.—
WSJ,
WSJ,
1 Oct. 2021
Noun
-
During the voyage, travelers can spend time spotting wildlife like Arctic foxes, whales, polar bears, and more, and explore the harsh landscape by zodiac boat, kayaking, and snowshoeing.—
Katie Nadworny,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Those who are lucky may notice foxes, badgers, otters or deer along the route.—
Jeanine Barone,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
This yuckster attitude was apparently contagious, because Gray herself got in on the act on a day in which she was scheduled to kiss the young hunk Christopher Atkins, who had a recurring role for one season as a camp counselor.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Sep. 2025
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But inside, slabs of colored glass, hunks of polished resin, and sundry material experiments gleam like mirages in the sunlight that streams in from the ceiling and windows.—
Hannah Martin,
Architectural Digest,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Get an eyeful of Davidson on The Tonight Show in the interview above.—
Shania Russell,
EW.com,
23 July 2025
-
Alternatively, get an eyeful of the Leake Street Arches—aka the London Graffiti tunnel—beneath Waterloo Station, and pop out on Lower Marsh, with its centuries-old street market and proper Lambeth vibe.—
Emma John,
AFAR Media,
24 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pretty boy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretty%20boy. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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