— homeliness , n.
/hohm"lee/ , adj., homelier, homeliest .
1. lacking in physical attractiveness; not beautiful; unattractive: a homely child.
2. not having elegance, refinement, or cultivation.
3. proper or suited to the home or to ordinary domestic life; plain; unpretentious: homely food.
4. commonly seen or known.
[ 1300-50; ME homly. See HOME, -LY ]
Syn. 1, 2, 3. SIMPLE, HOMELY (HOMEY), HOMELIKE, PLAIN imply absence of adornment or embellishment. Something that is SIMPLE is not elaborate or complex: a simple kind of dress. In the United States, HOMELY usually suggests absence of natural beauty: an unattractive person almost homely enough to be called ugly. In England, the word suggests a wholesome simplicity without artificial refinement or elegance; since it characterizes that which is comfortable and attractive, it is equivalent to HOMEY: a homely cottage.
HOMELIKE also emphasizes comfort and attractiveness, but it conveys less strongly than does HOMEY a sense of intimate security: a homelike interior, arrangement, atmosphere. Something that is PLAIN has little or no adornment: expensive but plain clothing.