comely means attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.; Of a person: attractive or pleasing to look at; beautiful, handsome; also, attractive but not particularly beautiful or handsome. It carries an Arena rating of 1510, earned across 2 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, comely ranks #7,102 of 14,448 for Funniest Words, #7,127 of 14,431 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #7,152 of 14,445 for Most Beautiful Words, #7,171 of 14,448 for Most Incisive Words.
comely is pronounced /ˈkʌmli/.
Why “comely” is a great word
Pleasing in appearance, especially in a wholesome, decent, or graceful way. From Middle English *comly*, from Old English *cymlīċ*, *cȳmlīċ* ("beautiful, splendid, convenient"), from *cȳme* ("beautiful, splendid, fine") + *-līċ* (suffix meaning 'like'), with *cȳme* descending from Proto-Germanic **kūmiz* ("delicate, feeble"). Unlike "beautiful," which suggests a striking or classic perfection, or "handsome," which implies a dignified or robust pleasingness, "comely" carries a softer, more modest grace. It is the quiet symmetry of a well-tended cottage garden, the unadorned neatness of a handwritten letter, or the gentle propriety of a simple woolen dress—an attractiveness found not in grandeur but in a fitting and gentle rightness, the beauty of being unshowy yet deeply settled.
Etymology
The adjective is derived from Middle English comly, comli, cumly, cumlich (“of a person: beautiful, handsome, etc.; of noble birth, bearing, or character; of behaviour: appropriate, becoming; of an event: convenient; favourable; of a thing: beautiful, wonderful; fitting, proper”), from Old English cymlīċ, cȳmlīċ (“beautiful, comely; splendid; convenient”), from cȳme (“beautiful, comely; splendid; exquisite, fine”) + -līċ (suffix meaning ‘like; relating to’ forming adjectives). Cȳme is derived from Proto-Germanic *kūmiz (“delicate; feeble”), from *kūmalīkaz (“dear; pitiful”), probably related to *kūmaz, *kūmijaz (“pitiful; frail, weak”), from Proto-Indo-European *gewH- (“to call, name; to call on, invoke; to cry, cry out”). The word was influenced by come (verb).
The verb is derived from th
adj
- Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.; Of a person: attractive or pleasing to look at; beautiful, handsome; also, attractive but not particularly beautiful or handsome.“a comely woman”
- Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.; Of a person, an action, behaviour, etc.: meeting accepted moral or social norms; appropriate, becoming, proper.“Doth any contumely vvhich vvee ſuſtaine for religions ſake pierce ſo deeply as […] vvhen they […] trample vnder foote almoſt vvhatſoeuer either vvee or the vvhole Church of God by the ſpace of ſo many ages haue beene accuſtomed vnto for the comlier and better exerciſe of our religion according to the ſoundeſt rules that vviſedome directed by the vvord of God and by long experience confirmed hath b”
- Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.; Of a thing: beautiful, elegant, well-composed; also, delicate, fine.“In ſhootinge at the prickes, haſtye and quicke drawinge is neyther ſure nor yet comely.”
- Pleasing to the feelings or senses; agreeable, nice, pleasant.“Oh hovv comely it is and hovv reviving / To the Spirits of juſt men long oppreſt! / VVhen God into the hands of thir deliverer / Puts invincible might”
verb
- To embellish or grace (something).“One diligent seruiture, skilfull to waight, / more comelieth thy table than other some eight, / That stand for to listen, or gasing about, / not minding their dutie, within nor without.”
adv
- Synonym of comelily (“in a comely manner: in an attractive or pleasing manner; in a manner which meets accepted moral or social norms”).“So ſlides he dovvne vppon his greyned bat [i.e., a walking stick]; / And comely diſtant ſits he by her ſide, […]”
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