different between adroit vs pretty
adroit
English
Etymology
Borrowed from French adroit, from French à (“on the; to”) (from Old French a (“to; towards”), from Latin ad (“to; towards”), from Proto-Indo-European *ád (“at; near”)) + French droit (“right”) (from Old French droit, dreit, from Vulgar Latin *dr?ctus, syncopated form of Latin d?rectus (“laid straight; direct, straight; level; upright”), perfective passive participle of d?rig? (“to lay straight”), from dis- (“apart, in two”) (from Proto-Indo-European *dwís (“twice; in two”)) + reg? (“to govern, rule; to guide, steer”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h?ré?eti (“to be straightening, setting upright”))).
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA(key): /??d???t/
- Rhymes: -??t
Adjective
adroit (comparative adroiter or more adroit, superlative adroitest or most adroit)
- Deft, dexterous, or skillful.
Synonyms
- See Thesaurus:skillful
Antonyms
- clumsy
- maladroit
Derived terms
- adroitness
- adroitly
- maladroit
Translations
Anagrams
- Tirado
French
Etymology
à + droit. Doublet of adret.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /a.d?wa/
Adjective
adroit (feminine singular adroite, masculine plural adroits, feminine plural adroites)
- skilful, apt, skilled (possessing skill, skilled)
Descendants
- ? English: adroit
- ? German: adrett
- ? Danish: adræt
Further reading
- “adroit” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
Anagrams
- dorait, rodait, rôdait
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pretty
English
Alternative forms
- pooty, purdy (nonstandard)
- pratty (dialectal)
- prettie, pretie (obsolete)
Etymology
From Middle English prety, preti, praty, prati, from Old English prætti? (“tricky, crafty, sly, cunning, wily, astute”), from Proto-Germanic *prattugaz (“boastful, sly, slick, deceitful, tricky, cunning”), corresponding to prat (“trick”) +? -y. Cognate with Dutch prettig (“nice, pleasant”), Low German prettig (“funny”), Icelandic prettugur (“deceitful, tricky”). For the sense-development, compare canny, clever, cute.
Pronunciation
- (UK, US) IPA(key): /?p??ti/
- (US, dialectal) IPA(key): /?p?ti/
- (US, rare) IPA(key): /?p??ti/
- Rhymes: -?ti
Adjective
pretty (comparative prettier, superlative prettiest)
- Pleasant to the sight or other senses; attractive, especially of women or children, but less strikingly than something beautiful. [from 15th c.]
- 2010, Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian, 4 Feb 2010:
- To escape a violent beating from sailors to whom he has sold a non-functioning car, Jerry takes his stepfamily for a holiday in a trailer park miles away, where, miraculously, young Nick meets a very pretty young woman called Sheeni, played by Portia Doubleday.
- 2010, Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian, 4 Feb 2010:
- Of objects or things: nice-looking, appealing. [from 15th c.]
- 2010, Lia Leendertz, The Guardian, 13 Feb 2010:
- 'Petit Posy' brassicas […] are a cross between kale and brussels sprouts, and are really very pretty with a mild, sweet taste.
- 2010, Lia Leendertz, The Guardian, 13 Feb 2010:
- (often derogatory) Fine-looking; only superficially attractive; initially appealing but having little substance; see petty. [from 15th c.]
- 1962, "New Life for the Liberals", Time, 28 Sep 1962:
- Damned by the Socialists as "traitors to the working class," its leaders were decried by Tories as "faceless peddlers of politics with a pretty little trinket for every taste."
- 1962, "New Life for the Liberals", Time, 28 Sep 1962:
- Cunning; clever, skilful. [from 9th c.]
- (dated) Moderately large; considerable. [from 15th c.]
- 2004, "Because They're Worth it", Time, 26 Jan 04:
- "What did you do to your hair?" The answer could be worth a pretty penny for L'Oreal.
- 2004, "Because They're Worth it", Time, 26 Jan 04:
- (dated) Excellent, commendable, pleasing; fitting or proper (of actions, thoughts etc.). [from 16th c.]
- 1815, Jane Austen, Emma, Boston 1867, page 75:
- Some people are surprised, I believe, that that the eldest was not [named after his father], but Isabella would have him named Henry, which I thought very pretty of her.
- 1919, Saki, ‘The Oversight’, The Toys of Peace:
- ‘This new fashion of introducing the candidate's children into an election contest is a pretty one,’ said Mrs. Panstreppon; ‘it takes away something from the acerbity of party warfare, and it makes an interesting experience for the children to look back on in after years.’
- 1926, Ernest Hemingway, The sun also rises, page 251:
- "Oh, Jake." Brett said, "we could have had such a damned good time together." Ahead was a mounted policeman in khaki directing traffic. He raised his baton. The car slowed suddenly pressing Brett against me. "Yes", I said. "Isn't it pretty to think so?"
- 1815, Jane Austen, Emma, Boston 1867, page 75:
- (ironic) Awkward, unpleasant. [from 16th c.]
- 1931, "Done to a Turn", Time, 26 Jan 1931:
- His sadistic self-torturings finally landed him in a pretty mess: still completely married, practically sure he was in love with Tillie, he made dishonorable proposals of marriage to two other women.
- 1877 "Black Beauty", Anna Sewell
- A pretty thing it would be if a man of business had to examine every cab-horse before he hired it
- 1931, "Done to a Turn", Time, 26 Jan 1931:
Antonyms
- ugly
Derived terms
Translations
Further reading
- Pretty in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)
Adverb
pretty (not comparable)
- Somewhat, fairly, quite; sometimes also (by meiosis) very.
- 1723, Charles Walker, Memoirs of Sally Salisbury, V:
- By the Sheets you have sent me to peruse, the Account you have given of her Birth and Parentage is pretty exact [...].
- 1859, Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species, I:
- It seems pretty clear that organic beings must be exposed during several generations to the new conditions of life to cause any appreciable amount of variation [...].
- 2002, Colin Jones, The Great Nation, Penguin 2003, page 539:
- The Revolutionary decade was a pretty challenging time for business.
- 1723, Charles Walker, Memoirs of Sally Salisbury, V:
- (dialect) Prettily, in a pretty manner.
Usage notes
- When particularly stressed, the adverb pretty serves almost to diminish the adjective or adverb that it modifies, by emphasizing that there are greater levels of intensity.
Derived terms
- pretty much
- pretty well
Translations
Noun
pretty (plural pretties)
- A pretty person; a term of address to a pretty person.
- 1939, Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson, and Edgar Allan Woolf, The Wizard of Oz
- I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!
- 1939, Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson, and Edgar Allan Woolf, The Wizard of Oz
- Something that is pretty.
- We'll stop at the knife store and look at the sharp pretties.
Verb
pretty (third-person singular simple present pretties, present participle prettying, simple past and past participle prettied)
- To make pretty; to beautify
Derived terms
- pretty up
Anagrams
- Pettry
pretty From the web:
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