beauty

English

Etymology

From Middle English bewty, bewte, beaute, bealte, from Anglo-Norman and Old French beauté (early Old French spelling biauté), from Vulgar Latin *bellitātem (“beauty”), from Latin bellus (“beautiful, fair”); see beau. In this sense, mostly displaced native Old English fæġernes, whence Modern English fairness.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈbjuːti/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈbjuti/, [-ɾi]
• (Canada) IPA^(key): [ˈbju̟ti], [ˈbju̟ːɾi], [ˈb(j)ɪu̯ɾ̥ɪ]

• Audio (GA)

  (file)

• (Norfolk) IPA^(key): /ˈbuːti/
• Homophone: booty (Norfolk)
• Rhymes: -uːti
• Hyphenation: beau‧ty

Noun

beauty (countable and uncountable, plural beauties)

1. (uncountable) The quality of being (especially visually) attractive, pleasing, fine or good-looking; comeliness.
   • 1818, John Keats, “Book I”, in Endymion: A Poetic Romance, London: […] [T. Miller] for Taylor and Hessey, […], →OCLC, page 3, lines 1–5:

     A thing of beauty is a joy for ever: / Its loveliness increases; it will never / Pass into nothingness; but still will keep / A bower quiet for us, and a sleep / Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.

   • 1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC:

     `Say, hast thou seen enough!' `I have looked on beauty, and I am blinded,' I said hoarsely, lifting my hand to cover up my eyes.

   • 1900, Charles W[addell] Chesnutt, chapter I, in The House Behind the Cedars, Boston, Mass., New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company […], →OCLC:

     Warwick's first glance had revealed the fact that the young woman was strikingly handsome, with a stately beauty seldom encountered.

   • 1932, Delos W. Lovelace, King Kong, published 1965, page 152:

     "The aviators didn't get him," Denham replied slowly. "What?" "It was Beauty. As always Beauty killed the Beast."

   • 1988, "… beauty and recollection, like danger, glamour, greed, hunger- everything but disappointment and desire- were concepts belonging to other people.” -Second Son, Robert Ferro
3. Someone who is beautiful.

   Brigitte Bardot was a renowned beauty.

4. (in the plural) Those aspects or elements that make someone or something beautiful.
   • 1769, Firishta, translated by Alexander Dow, Tales translated from the Persian of Inatulla of Delhi, volume I, Dublin: P. and W. Wilson et al., page iii:

     There the roſy-finger'd Spring, by the liquid mirror of a cryſtalline pool, was attiring her fair daughters in ſeven-fold ornaments, while the love-whiſpering breezes ſtole kiſſes as they paſſed, and fanned their glowing beauties.

5. Something that is particularly good or pleasing.

   What a goal! That was a real beauty!

6. An excellent or egregious example of something.

   He got into a fight and ended up with two black eyes – two real beauties!

7. (with the definite article) The excellence or genius of a scheme or decision.

   The beauty of the deal is it costs nothing!

8. (physics, obsolete) A beauty quark (now called bottom quark).
9. Beauty treatment; cosmetology.

   a hair and beauty salon

   • 2013, Bethany Rooney, Mary Lou Belli, Directors Tell the Story, page 184:

     When the beauty team departs the set, the AD will say, “Let's go on a bell.” A bell sounds throughout the stage, and […]

10. (obsolete) Prevailing style or taste; rage; fashion.
    • 1653, Jeremy Taylor, “Twenty-five Sermons Preached at Golden Grove; Being for the Winter Half-year, […]: Sermon XVIII. [The Marriage Ring; or, The Mysteriousness and Duties of Marriage.] Part II.”, in Reginald Heber, editor, The Whole Works of the Right Rev. Jeremy Taylor, D.D. […], volume V, London: Ogle, Duncan, and Co. […]; and Richard Priestley, […], published 1822, →OCLC, page 277:

      Menander in the comedy brings in a man turning his wife from his house, because she stained her hair yellow, which was then the beauty.

11. (archaic, in the plural) Beautiful passages or extracts of poetry.

Usage notes

• Adjectives often applied to "beauty": natural, great, real, physical, exotic, inner, spiritual, strange, divine, visual, heavenly, intellectual, facial, attractive, sensuous, sensual, seductive, musical, austere, alluring, mathematical, geometric, astounding, bodily, pictorial.

Synonyms

• (property, quality): good-lookingness, gorgeousness, inspiration, loveliness, see Thesaurus:beauty
• (someone who is beautiful): belle, looker, good looker, see Thesaurus:beautiful person or Thesaurus:beautiful woman
• (something pleasing): gem, jewel

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of "property, quality"): repulsiveness, homeliness, ugliness

Derived terms

• age before beauty
• anti-beauty quark
• bathing beauty
• beaut
• beauteous
• beautician
• beautifiable
• beautification
• beautifier
• beautiful
• beautifully
• beautifulness
• beautify
• beautihood
• beautiless
• beautility
• beautisome
• beauty and the beast
• beautyberry
• beauty blender
• beautybush
• beauty bush
• beauty contest
• beauty dish
• beautydom
• beauty factory
• beauty fades, dumb is forever
• beauty heart radish
• beauty is in the eye of the beer holder
• beauty is in the eye of the beholder
• beauty is only skin deep
• beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder
• beauty mark
• beauty-mark
• beauty pageant
• beauty parade
• beauty parlor
• beauty parlour
• beauty product
• beauty quark
• beauty queen
• beauty rest
• beauty salon
• beauty school
• beauty shop
• beauty shot
• beauty-sleep
• beauty sleep
• beauty spot
• betel nut beauty
• bewdy
• black beauty
• Camberwell beauty
• Flemish beauty
• K-beauty
• line of beauty
• meadow beauty
• painted beauty
• plastic beauty
• Rutland beauty
• Sleeping Beauty
• sleeping beauty
• spring beauty
• you beauty

 

Descendants

• → Cebuano: byuti

Translations

quality of pleasing appearance

• Arabic: جَمَال (ar) m (jamāl), زَيْن (ar) m (zayn)

  Egyptian Arabic: جمال m (gamāl)

  Moroccan Arabic: زين m (zayn), زين m (zīn)

• Aramaic:

  Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܫܘܼܦܪܵܐ (šupra)

• Armenian: գեղեցկություն (hy) (geġecʻkutʻyun)
• Azerbaijani: gözəllik (az), hüsn (poetic)
• Belarusian: прыгажо́сць f (pryhažóscʹ), хараство́ n (xarastvó), краса́ f (krasá)
• Bengali: সৌন্দর্য (bn) (śōundorjo), খুবসুরতী (khubsuroti), জামাল (bn) (jamal)
• Berber: aẓři, aẓli, tiẓilt
• Bulgarian: ху́бост (bg) f (húbost), красота́ (bg) f (krasotá), пре́лест (bg) f (prélest)
• Catalan: bellesa (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 美麗／美丽 (zh) (měilì), 漂亮 (zh) (piàoliang), 美 (zh) (měi)

  Wu: 美 (⁵me)

• Coptic: ⲙⲛⲧⲥⲁⲉⲓⲉ (mntsaeie)
• Czech: krása (cs) f
• Danish: skønhed c
• Dutch: schoonheid (nl) f
• Egyptian: (nfrw)
• Esperanto: belo
• Estonian: ilu
• Farefare: sõŋa
• Finnish: kauneus (fi)
• French: beauté (fr) f
• Friulian: bielece f
• Galician: beleza (gl) f, fermosura f
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: Schönheit (de) f
• Greek: ομορφιά (el) f (omorfiá)

  Ancient: κάλλος f (kállos)

• Hebrew: יופי (he) m (yófi)
• Hindi: सौन्दर्य (saundarya), सुंदरता (hi) (sundartā), ख़ूबसूरती f (xūbsūrtī), हुस्न (hi) m (husna)
• Hungarian: szépség (hu)
• Iban: bajik
• Icelandic: fegurð (is) f
• Ido: beleso (io)
• Ingrian: käpehys
• Irish: áilleacht f, spéiriúlacht f, áille f, scéimh f, maise f, breáichte f
• Istriot: balissa f
• Italian: bellezza (it) f
• Japanese: 美しさ (ja) (うつくしさ, utsukushisa), (component) 美 (ja) (び, bi)
• Korean: 아름다움 (ko) (areumdaum), 미(美) (ko) (mi)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: جوانی (cwanî)

• Kyrgyz: сулуулук (ky) (suluuluk), кооздук (ky) (koozduk)
• Latin: pulchritūdō f, formōsitās f
• Latvian: daiļums m, skaistums m, glītums m
• Lithuanian: gražumas m, grožis (lt) m
• Low German: Schöönheit f
• Macedonian: уба́вина f (ubávina), красо́та f (krasóta), у́бост f (úbost)
• Maharastri Prakrit: 𑀭𑀽𑀅 (rūa)
• Malayalam: സൗന്ദര്യം (ml) (saundaryaṁ), മനോഹാരിത (ml) (manōhārita)
• Maltese: sbuħija f
• Manx: aalid m, aalinid, bwoyid m, stoamid
• Maori: rerehua
• Marathi: सौंदर्य n (saundarya), सुंदरता f (sundartā)
• Mongolian: гоо үзэсгэлэн (goo üzesgelen), сайхан байдал (sajxan bajdal)
• Nheengatu: purangasawa
• Norman: bieauté f (Jersey)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: skjønnhet (no) m or f

  Nynorsk: venleik (nn) m, skjønnheit (nn) f

• Occitan: belesa (oc) f
• Old English: fægernes f
• Old French: biauté f
• Persian: زیبایی (fa), جمال (fa), حسن (fa), قشنگی (fa)
• Plautdietsch: Scheenheit f
• Polish: piękno (pl) n, uroda (pl) f, krasa f, pięknota f (archaic), krasota f (archaic)
• Portuguese: beleza (pt) f
• Romanian: frumusețe (ro) f
• Romansch: bellezza f (Rumantsch Grischun, Puter, Vallader), bellezia f (Sursilvan), baleztgia f (Sutsilvan), balegia f (Sutsilvan), belezza f (Surmiran)
• Russian: красота́ (ru) f (krasotá), пре́лесть (ru) f (prélestʹ), краса́ (ru) f (krasá) (dated), лепота́ (ru) f (lepotá) (dated, poetic)
• Sanskrit: इन्दिरा (sa) f (indirā)
• Sardinian: bellesa f
• Scots: beauty, brawness
• Scottish Gaelic: àilleachd f, maise f, sgèimh f, bòidhchead f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: лепота f, красота f (poetic), бај m (poetic), дивота

  Roman: lepota (sh) f, krasota (sh) f (poetic), baj (sh) m (poetic), divota (sh)

• Sicilian: bidizza f
• Slovak: krása f
• Slovene: lepota (sl) f
• Somali: qurux
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: rědnosć f

• Spanish: belleza (es) f, hermosura (es) f, preciosidad f, preciosura f, beldad (es) f, lindeza (es) f
• Sudovian: grozis m
• Swahili: urembo (sw), uzuri (sw), jamala (sw)
• Swedish: skönhet (sv) c, fägring (sv) c (poetic)
• Tagalog: ganda, kagandahan
• Tajik: зебоӣ (tg) (zeboyī)
• Tamil: அழகு (ta) (aḻaku), எழில் (ta) (eḻil), சௌந்தரியம் (ta) (cauntariyam)
• Telugu: అందము (te) (andamu), చక్కదనము (te) (cakkadanamu)
• Thai: ความสวย (th) (kwaam-sǔai), ความสวยงาม (th) (kwaam-sǔai-ngaam)
• Tibetan: please add this translation if you can
• Turkish: güzellik (tr)
• Tuvan: чаражы (çarajı)
• Ukrainian: краса́ f (krasá), вро́да f (vróda)
• Urdu: خوبصورتی f (xūbsūrtī)
• Uyghur: گۈزەللىك (güzellik)
• Venetian: bełézsa f
• Volapük: jön (vo)
• Votic: ilozuz
• Welsh: harddwch m, prydferthwch m
• Yiddish: שיינקײַט f (sheynkayt)

someone beautiful: male

• Belarusian: прыгажу́н m (pryhažún), красу́н m (krasún)
• Bulgarian: красавец (bg) m (krasavec)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 帥哥／帅哥 (zh) (shuàigē)

• Dutch: beauty (nl), schoonheid (nl), schone (nl)
• Esperanto: belulo
• Finnish: komistus (fi)
• German: (nominalized adjective) Schöner m
• Hindi: सुन्दर (hi) m (sundar)
• Japanese: 美少年 (びしょうねん, bishōnen), 美男 (ja) (びなん, binan), 美男子 (ja) (びだんし, bidanshi), 美青年 (ja) (びせいねん, biseinen), イケメン (ja) (いけめん, ikemen)
• Kazakh: сұлу (sūlu)
• Korean: 미소년(美少年) (ko) (misonyeon), 미남(美男) (ko) (minam)
• Latvian: skaistulis m
• Macedonian: у́бавец m (úbavec)
• Malayalam: സുന്ദരൻ (ml) (sundaraṉ)
• Nheengatu: purangasawa
• Okinawan: 清らー (ちゅらー, churā)
• Polish: urodziwiec m, przystojniak (pl) m
• Portuguese: beleza (pt) f
• Russian: краса́вец (ru) m (krasávec), краса́вчик (ru) m (krasávčik)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: лепотан m, љепотан m

  Roman: lepotan (sh) m, ljepotan (sh) m

• Slovene: lepotec m
• Spanish: guapo (es) m
• Tagalog: gwapo
• Tamil: அழகன் (ta) (aḻakaṉ)
• Telugu: అందగాడు (te) (andagāḍu)
• Ukrainian: кра́сень m (krásenʹ), красу́нь m (krasúnʹ), вродли́вець m (vrodlývecʹ), хорошу́н (uk) m (xorošún), гарню́к m (harnjúk)
• Volapük: (♂♀) jönan, (♂) hijönan

someone beautiful: female

• Arabic: حَسْنَاء (ar) f (ḥasnāʔ), جَمِيلَة f (jamīla), غَانِيَة f (ḡāniya)
• Armenian: գեղեցկուհի (hy) (geġecʻkuhi)
• Belarusian: прыгажу́ня f (pryhažúnja), красу́ня f (krasúnja), кра́ля f (králja)
• Bengali: সুন্দরী (bn) (śundori)
• Bulgarian: краса́вица (bg) f (krasávica)
• Catalan: bellesa (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 美人 (zh) (měirén), 美女 (zh) (měinǚ)

• Czech: kráska (cs) f, krasavice (cs) f
• Danish: skønhed c
• Dutch: schoonheid (nl), schone (nl) f
• Esperanto: belulino
• Finnish: kaunokainen (fi), kaunotar (fi)
• French: beauté (fr) f
• Georgian: მზეთუნახავი (ka) (mzetunaxavi)
• German: Schönheit (de) f, Schöne (de) f (nominalized adjective)
• Greek: καλλονή (el) f (kalloní)
• Hebrew: יְפֵהפִיָה f (yfēfiyá)
• Hindi: सुन्दरी (hi) f (sundarī)
• Hungarian: szépség (hu)
• Interlingua: beltate (ia)
• Irish: ainnir f, bé f, spéirbhean f
• Italian: bellezza (it) f
• Japanese: 美人 (ja) (びじん, bijin), 美女 (ja) (びじょ, bijo), 別嬪 (ja) (べっぴん, beppin) (dated)
• Kazakh: сұлу (sūlu), ару (aru)
• Korean: 미인(美人) (ko) (miin), 미녀(美女) (ko) (minyeo)
• Latvian: skaistule f, daiļava f
• Lithuanian: gražuolė f
• Macedonian: уба́вица f (ubávica)
• Malayalam: സുന്ദരി (ml) (sundari)
• Nheengatu: purangasawa
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: skjønnhet (no) m or f

  Nynorsk: skjønnheit (nn) f

• Oki-no-Erabu: 清ら女 (ちゅらうなぐ, churaunagu)
• Okinawan: 清らー (ちゅらー, churā), 清ら影 (ちゅらかーぎー, churakāgī)
• Polish: piękność (pl) f, krasawica (pl) f (archaic), laska (pl) f (low colloquial)
• Portuguese: beleza (pt) f, beldade (pt) f
• Romanian: frumusețe (ro) f
• Russian: краса́вица (ru) f (krasávica), красо́тка (ru) f (krasótka), кра́ля (ru) f (králja) (low colloquial)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: лепотица f, љепотица f, лепојка f, љепојка f

  Roman: lepotica (sh) f, ljepotica (sh) f, lepojka f, ljepojka (sh) f

• Slovak: kráska f, krásavica f
• Slovene: lepotica f
• Spanish: guapa (es) f, belleza (es) f
• Swedish: skönhet (sv) c
• Tamil: அழகி (ta) (aḻaki)
• Ukrainian: красу́ня f (krasúnja), вродли́виця f (vrodlývycja), красу́ха f (krasúxa), кра́ля (uk) f (králja), хорошу́ля f (xorošúlja)
• Vietnamese: mỹ nhân (vi) (美人), mỹ nữ (vi)
• Volapük: (♂♀) jönan, (♀) jijönan
• Yoron: めーらび (mērabi)

something particularly good or pleasing

• Bulgarian: красота (bg) f (krasota)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 美 (zh) (měi)

• Czech: krása (cs) f
• Dutch: juweeltje (nl) n, prachtexemplaar (nl) n
• Finnish: kaunokainen (fi)
• German: Prachtstück (de) n
• Latvian: skaistulis m, skaistums m
• Malayalam: മനോഹരം (ml) (manōharaṁ), സുന്ദരം (ml) (sundaraṁ)
• Polish: piękność (pl) f
• Portuguese: beleza (pt) f
• Russian: конфе́тка (ru) f (konfétka)
• Spanish: belleza (es) f
• Tamil: தலைசிறந்த (talaiciṟanta)

excellent or egregious example of something

excellence or genius

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} het mooie (nl) n
• Finnish: kauneus (fi)
• Hungarian: szépség (hu)

beauty quark — see bottom quark

beauty treatment — see cosmetology

prevailing style or taste

• Finnish: kauneusihanne

beautiful passages or extracts of poetry

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: ^{(please verify)} beauté (fr) f
• Hebrew: ^{(please verify)} יופי (he) m (yofi)
• Scottish Gaelic: ^{(please verify)} maise f, ^{(please verify)} brèaghachd f, ^{(please verify)} bòidhchead f, ^{(please verify)} grinneas m, ^{(please verify)} sgèimh f
• Serbo-Croatian: ^{(please verify)} ljepota (sh) f

See also

• usefulness

Interjection

beauty

1. (Canada) Thanks!
2. (Canada) Cool!

   It's the long weekend. Beauty!

Adjective

beauty (comparative more beauty, superlative most beauty)

1. (Canada) Of high quality, well done.

   He made a beauty pass through the neutral zone.

Verb

beauty (third-person singular simple present beauties, present participle beautying, simple past and past participle beautied)

1. (obsolete, transitive) To make beautiful.

Further reading

• “beauty”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “beauty”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English beauty.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbjuː.ti/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: beau‧ty

Noun

beauty f (plural beauty's, diminutive beauty'tje n)

1. A beauty, looker, beautiful person
2. A beautiful other creature or thing

   Die prachtige hengst is al net zo'n beauty als z'n ruiter

   That gorgeous stallion is as much of a beauty as his rider

3. Human beauty, as the object or goal of cosmetics etc.

Synonyms

• schoonheid
• (beautiful thing only): juweeltje n, prachtexemplaar n