prettier; prettiest
2
a
: pleasing by delicacy or grace
b
: having conventionally accepted elements of beauty
c
: appearing or sounding pleasant or nice but lacking strength, force, manliness, purpose, or intensity
pretty words that make no sense—
Elizabeth B. Browning
Elizabeth B. Browning4
: moderately large : considerable
a very pretty profit
cost a pretty penny
5
: easy to enjoy : pleasant
—usually used in negative constructions
reality is not so pretty—Caleb Solomon
Caleb Solomon1
a
: in some degree : moderately
pretty cold weather
2
: in a gracefully pleasing manner : prettily
pop vocalists who can sing pretty—Gerald Levitch
Gerald Levitch
Using Pretty as an Adverb: Usage Guide
Some handbooks complain that pretty is overworked and recommend the selection of a more specific word or advise that pretty should be restricted to informal or colloquial contexts. Pretty is used to tone down a statement and is in wide use across the whole spectrum of English. It is common in informal speech and writing but is neither rare nor wrong in serious discourse
he may, if he be pretty well off or clever, qualify himself as a doctor
—G. B. Shaw
G. B. Shaw
a return to those traditions of American foreign policy which worked pretty well for over a century
—H. S. Commager
H. S. Commager
the arguments for buying expensive books have to be pretty cogent
—The Times Literary Supplement (London)
The Times Literary Supplement (London)
plural pretties
1
2
: a pretty person or thing
prettied; prettying
: to make pretty
—usually used with up
curtains to pretty up the room
Examples of pretty in a Sentence
Adjective
This white shape stood apart by the hedge alone. From her position he knew it to be the pretty maiden with whom he had not danced. Trifling as the matter was, he yet instinctively felt that she was hurt by his oversight.
—Thomas Hardy, Tess of the D'Urbervilles, 1891
Darcy, on the contrary, had seen a collection of people in whom there was little beauty and no fashion, for none of whom he had felt the smallest interest, and from none received either attention or pleasure. Miss Bennet he acknowledged to be pretty, but she smiled too much.
—Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, 1813
He made a pretty profit selling his antique car.
She received a pretty sum of money.
Adverb
By taunting the police, beating drums and throwing rocks, the rioters make it pretty clear that they want not a rational debate but the world's attention …
—Fareed Zakaria, Newsweek, 30 Apr. 2001
… I could pretty much go wherever I felt a story led …
—Roy Blount, Jr., New York Times Book Review, 9 Mar. 1986
… regards most of us as pretty irrevocably plunged in illusion.
—Iris Murdoch, The Fire and the Sun, 1977
The reflected radiance served to show, pretty distinctly, the aspect and arrangement of the room which Hepzibah entered, after descending the stairs.
—Nathaniel Hawthorne, The House of Seven Gables, 1851
“Did you put the keys on the table?” “I'm pretty sure I did.”
The teams are pretty equally matched.
The work is pretty hard.
I have to leave pretty soon.
The movie was pretty good but not great.
They've accomplished some pretty amazing things.
She was driving pretty fast.
Verb
She prettied the cake with icing, sprinkles, and nuts.
Thomas Hardy, Tess of the D'Urbervilles, 1891
Darcy, on the contrary, had seen a collection of people in whom there was little beauty and no fashion, for none of whom he had felt the smallest interest, and from none received either attention or pleasure. Miss Bennet he acknowledged to be pretty, but she smiled too much.
—Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, 1813
He made a pretty profit selling his antique car.
She received a pretty sum of money.
Adverb
By taunting the police, beating drums and throwing rocks, the rioters make it pretty clear that they want not a rational debate but the world's attention …
—Fareed Zakaria, Newsweek, 30 Apr. 2001
… I could pretty much go wherever I felt a story led …
—Roy Blount, Jr., New York Times Book Review, 9 Mar. 1986
… regards most of us as pretty irrevocably plunged in illusion.
—Iris Murdoch, The Fire and the Sun, 1977
The reflected radiance served to show, pretty distinctly, the aspect and arrangement of the room which Hepzibah entered, after descending the stairs.
—Nathaniel Hawthorne, The House of Seven Gables, 1851
“Did you put the keys on the table?” “I'm pretty sure I did.”
The teams are pretty equally matched.
The work is pretty hard.
I have to leave pretty soon.
The movie was pretty good but not great.
They've accomplished some pretty amazing things.
She was driving pretty fast.
Verb
She prettied the cake with icing, sprinkles, and nuts.
Recent Examples on the Web
Brad Japhe, HollywoodReporter, 25 Oct. 2025
Ahead, three ways to make the most of these pretty plants well beyond summer.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 23 Oct. 2025
Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 28 Oct. 2025
The place being a Midwestern park, the ghost is by all accounts pretty damn polite.
—Graham Averill, Outside, 28 Oct. 2025
Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 22 Mar. 2025
Rounding the culinary experiences out is Pistachio, the pastel-pretty café for sweet treats and fresh coffee.
—Chrissie McClatchie, Travel + Leisure, 4 Mar. 2025
Alyssa Grabinski, People.com, 21 Oct. 2024
In 2024, small business AI utilization is mostly allowing a smattering of employees to try out a few apps to pretty up their profile photo, review a contract or transcribe an online meeting.
—Gene Marks, Forbes, 26 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for pretty
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Adjective
Beyond the promise of pretty photos, there’s another siren summoning adventure-seekers to the bottom of the earth.
—Brad Japhe, HollywoodReporter, 25 Oct. 2025
Ahead, three ways to make the most of these pretty plants well beyond summer.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 23 Oct. 2025
Adverb
Marcus Mariota started for Daniels again and had the Commanders in pretty good position to get an advantage.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 28 Oct. 2025
The place being a Midwestern park, the ghost is by all accounts pretty damn polite.
—Graham Averill, Outside, 28 Oct. 2025
Noun
One of the most exclusive sporting events in the world, tickets to the Masters will cost you a pretty.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 22 Mar. 2025
Rounding the culinary experiences out is Pistachio, the pastel-pretty café for sweet treats and fresh coffee.
—Chrissie McClatchie, Travel + Leisure, 4 Mar. 2025
Verb
The sweater — no, sweatshirt — er, hybrid of the two — had a mock neck-like detail that prettied up the look more than a casual hoodie would have.
—Alyssa Grabinski, People.com, 21 Oct. 2024
In 2024, small business AI utilization is mostly allowing a smattering of employees to try out a few apps to pretty up their profile photo, review a contract or transcribe an online meeting.
—Gene Marks, Forbes, 26 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for pretty
Cite this Entry
“Pretty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pretty. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
prettier; prettiest
: delicately or gracefully attractive to the eye or ear
a pretty face
pretty tunes
prettiness
noun
ˈprit-ē-nəs
ˈpu̇rt-
: in some degree : fairly, moderately
pretty big
was pretty much ignored
pretty
3 of 3 noun like 1
plural pretties
: a pretty person or thing
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