beautiful
/ˈbjuːtɪfʊl/
adjective
Origin
Latin
bellus — handsome, pretty, fine
Overview
Meaning Now
- Possessing qualities that give great pleasure or satisfaction to the senses or the mind.
- Excellent of its kind; wonderful.
Literal older meaning
full of beauty
Language path
Latin → Old French → Middle English → English
Earliest form
beauteful
Earliest period
15th century
Journey
The word is a hybrid formation, combining the French-derived root 'beauty' with the Germanic suffix '-ful'. It replaced earlier terms like 'fair' or 'goodly' in describing aesthetic appreciation during the Late Middle English period.
Evolution
- Latin
bellus
“pretty, handsome”
Diminutive of bonus (good).
- Old French
beauté
“beauty”
Formation from the stem of bellus.
- Middle English
beauteful
“full of beauty”
Addition of the suffix -ful.
- Early Modern English
beautiful
“pleasing to the senses”
Stabilization of spelling to current form.
Connections
Word parts
beauty
root
the quality of being pleasing
ful
suffix
having the quality of
Related across languages
French
beau
handsome, beautiful
Italian
bello
beautiful
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External references use DefinedTerm semantics.