As an adjective, it means attractive or pleasant to look at, often in a delicate or charming way. As an adverb, it means 'fairly' or 'quite', as in 'pretty good'.
From Old English *prættig* meaning 'clever' or 'cunning', related to *præt* 'trick'. Over time, the meaning moved from cleverness to pleasing appearance.
‘Pretty’ started out meaning smart and tricky, not beautiful. English quietly shifted the compliment from brains to looks, which says a lot about cultural values. When you say 'pretty good', you’re actually using a beauty word as a softener.
"Pretty" has been used disproportionately about women and girls, often reducing them to appearance and reinforcing narrow beauty standards. It has also been used diminutively (e.g., "pretty good") in ways that can subtly downplay achievements.
Avoid using "pretty" to evaluate people’s worth or professionalism; if commenting on appearance, do so respectfully and without reinforcing gendered expectations.
["attractive","visually appealing","quite (as an adverb)"]
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