I. ˈpri-tē, ˈpər- also ˈpru̇- adjective
( pret·ti·er ; -est )
Etymology: Middle English praty, prety, from Old English prættig tricky, from prætt trick; akin to Old Norse prettr trick
Date: before 12th century
1.
a. : artful , clever
b. : pat , apt
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
3.
a. : miserable , terrible
a pretty mess you've gotten us into
b. chiefly Scottish : stout
4. : 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
Synonyms: see beautiful
• pret·ti·ly -tə-lē adverb
• pret·ty·ish -tē-ish adjective
II. ˈpri-tē, ˈpər- also ˈpru̇-; before “near(ly)” often ˈpərt or ˈprit or ˈpru̇t adverb
Date: 1565
1.
a. : in some degree : moderately
pretty cold weather
b. : quite , mainly
the wound was… pretty bad — Walt Whitman
2. : in a pretty manner : prettily
pop vocalists who can sing pretty — Gerald Levitch
•
- pretty much
Usage:
Some handbooks complain that pretty is overworked and recommend the selection of a more specific word or restrict pretty 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
a return to those traditions of American foreign policy which worked pretty well for over a century — H. S. Commager
the arguments for buying expensive books have to be pretty cogent — Times Literary Supplement
III. ˈpri-tē, ˈpər- also ˈpru̇- noun
( plural pretties )
Date: 1736
1. plural : dainty clothes ; especially : lingerie
2. : a pretty person or thing
IV. same as 3 transitive verb
( pret·tied ; pret·ty·ing )
Date: 1909
: to make pretty — usually used with up
curtains to pretty up the room