homely
lacking in physical attractiveness; not beautiful; unattractive: a homely child.
not having elegance, refinement, or cultivation.
proper or suited to the home or to ordinary domestic life; plain; unpretentious: homely food.
commonly seen or known.
Origin of homely
1synonym study For homely
Other words from homely
- home·li·ness, noun
- o·ver·home·li·ness, noun
- o·ver·home·ly, adjective
- un·home·li·ness, noun
- un·home·ly, adjective
Words that may be confused with homely
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use homely in a sentence
But, after all, it is in quieter, homelier work that he succeeds the best.
From Aldershot to Pretoria | W. E. SellersTheir subtleties and beauties irradiated the homelier artistic conceptions of Wordsworth, and the effect on him was permanent.
For the same reason I had rather say “hawkweed” than “hieracium”; the homelier word has more of kindly friendship.
The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft | George GissingNothing could be homelier than our equipage, or more shabby than the furniture of the little apartment.
Uncle Silas | J. S. LeFanuTo that in us, this world is so far strange and unnatural and unfitting, and we need a yet homelier home.
Thomas Wingfold, Curate | George MacDonald
British Dictionary definitions for homely
/ (ˈhəʊmlɪ) /
characteristic of or suited to the ordinary home; unpretentious
(of a person)
British warm and domesticated in manner or appearance
mainly US and Canadian plain or ugly
Derived forms of homely
- homeliness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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