Pretty Definition

prĭtē
prettied, prettier, pretties, prettiest, prettying
adjective
prettier, prettiest
Pleasing or attractive in a dainty, delicate, or graceful way rather than through striking beauty, elegance, grandeur, or stateliness.
Webster's New World
Fine; good; nice.
I'm in a pretty fix.
Webster's New World
Adroit; skillful.
A pretty move.
Webster's New World
Very bad; terrible.
In a pretty predicament; a situation that has reached a pretty pass.
American Heritage
Elegant.
Webster's New World
Antonyms:
adverb
Fairly; moderately.
Pretty sure.
Webster's New World
Quite or very.
Pretty angry.
Webster's New World
Prettily.
To talk pretty.
Webster's New World

Somewhat, fairly, quite; sometimes also (by meiosis) very.

Wiktionary
noun
pretties
A pretty person or thing.
Webster's New World
Delicate clothing, especially lingerie.
American Heritage
verb
To make pretty.
Webster's New World
idiom
pretty much
  • For the most part; mostly:
American Heritage
pretty nearly
  • mostly, almost, more or less, etc.

    I used up pretty nearly all of the flour

Webster's New World
sitting pretty
  • in a favorable position
Webster's New World

Other Word Forms of Pretty

Noun

Singular:
pretty
Plural:
pretties

Adjective

Base Form:
pretty
Comparative:
prettier
Superlative:
prettiest

Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Pretty

Origin of Pretty

  • From Middle English prety, preti, praty, prati, from Old English prættiÄ¡ (“tricky, crafty, sly, cunning, wily, astute"), from Proto-Germanic *prattugaz (“boastful, sly, slick, deceitful, tricky, cunning"), corresponding to prat (“trick") +"Ž -y. Cognate with Dutch prettig (“nice, pleasant"), dialectal German (East Friesland) prettig (“funny"), Low German pratzig (“arrogant, boastful, haughty"), German protzig (“showy, ostentatious, swanky, pretentious"), Icelandic prettugur (“deceitful, tricky"). For the sense-development, compare canny, clever, cute.

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English prety clever, fine, handsome from Old English prættig cunning from prætt trick

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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