elegance

el·e·gance
E1L1E1G2A1N1C3E1
/ˈɛl.ɪ.ɡəns/

noun

Grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners.

“The bride was elegance personified.”

Opposite
CommonScrabble 11

Meanings

nounelegance (usually uncountable, plural elegances)

plural elegances

  1. uncountableusuallyGrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners.

    The bride was elegance personified.

  2. uncountableusuallyRestraint and grace of style.

    The simple dress had a quiet elegance.

  3. uncountableusuallyThe beauty of an idea characterized by minimalism and intuitiveness while preserving exactness and precision.

    The proof of the theorem had a pleasing elegance.

  4. countabledatedusuallyA refinement or luxury.

    As to the comforts and elegances of life, we have enough of them for our good.

    1852, Various, Young Americans Abroad
    2 more examples

    At Rome, when Sallust was the fashionable writer, short sentences, uncommon words, and an obscure brevity, were affected as so many elegances.

    1881, Isaac D'Israeli, Curiosities of Literature, Vol. 1

    Phineas Duge[…] was, for a man of affairs and an American, singularly fond of the small elegances of life. Although he sat alone at dinner, the table was heaped with choice flowers and carefully selected hothouse fruit.

    1909, E. Phillips Oppenheim, chapter 10, in The Governors

Synonyms & antonyms

nouna refined quality of gracefulness and good taste

Opposite
Broader
Also see

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Latinēlegantia“exquisiteness; refinement, elegance”
  2. Middle Frenchélégance
  3. Englishelegance

From Middle French élégance, from Latin ēlegantia (“exquisiteness; refinement, elegance”).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek εὐσχημοσύνη
  • εὐσχημοσύνη (euskhēmosúnē)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Arabic أَنَاقَة
  • أَنَاقَة (ʔanāqa)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Bengali জামাল
  • জামাল (jamal)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Bulgarian елега́нтност, изи́сканост
  • елега́нтност (elegántnost)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • изи́сканост (izískanost)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • елега́нтност (elegántnost)beauty of an idea
  • изтънченост (iztănčenost)restraint and grace in style
Catalan elegància
  • elegànciagrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Chinese Mandarin 高雅, 優雅 /优雅
  • 高雅 (gāoyǎ)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • 優雅 /优雅 (yōuyǎ)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Czech elegance
  • elegancegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Danish elegance, elegance
  • elegancegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • elegancerestraint and grace in style
  • smagfuldhedrestraint and grace in style
Dutch elegantie
  • elegantiegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Finnish eleganssi, hienostuneisuus
  • eleganssigrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • hienostuneisuusgrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • eleganssibeauty of an idea
  • tyylikkyysbeauty of an idea
  • ylellisyysrefinement or luxury
  • eleganssirestraint and grace in style
  • tyylikkyysrestraint and grace in style
  • tyylirestraint and grace in style
French élégance, grâce
  • élégancegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • grâcegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • finessegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
German Eleganz
  • Eleganzgrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Hindi लालित्य, शिष्टता
  • लालित्य (lālitya)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • शिष्टता (śiṣṭatā)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Irish gléastacht, cuannacht
  • gléastachtgrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • cuannachtbeauty of an idea
  • gléastachtrefinement or luxury
  • gléastachtrestraint and grace in style
Japanese 優雅, 高雅
  • 優雅 (yūga)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • 高雅 (kōga)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • 典雅 (tenga)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Korean 우아, 기품
  • 우아 (ua)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • 기품 (gipum)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • 고아 (goa)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Māori purotutanga
  • purotutangagrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Norwegian Bokmål eleganse
  • elegansegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Polish elegancja, elegancja
  • elegancjagrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • elegancjarestraint and grace in style
Portuguese elegância, elegância
  • elegânciagrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • elegânciarestraint and grace in style
Romanian eleganță, grație
  • eleganțăgrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • grațiegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • finețegrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Russian элега́нтность, изы́сканность
  • элега́нтность (elegántnostʹ)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • изы́сканность (izýskannostʹ)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • изя́щество (izjáščestvo)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • элега́нтность (elegántnostʹ)beauty of an idea
  • элега́нтность (elegántnostʹ)restraint and grace in style
  • изы́сканность (izýskannostʹ)restraint and grace in style
Swedish elegans
  • elegansgrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
Tagalog elegansya, kagandahan
  • elegansyagrace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • kagandahanbeauty of an idea
  • elegansyarefinement or luxury
  • elegansyarestraint and grace in style
Ukrainian елега́нтність, ви́шуканість
  • елега́нтність (elehántnistʹ)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • ви́шуканість (výšukanistʹ)grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners
  • елега́нтність (elehántnistʹ)restraint and grace in style
  • ви́шуканість (výšukanistʹ)restraint and grace in style
Cite this entry
APA

elegance. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/elegance

MLA

“elegance.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/elegance. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “elegance,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/elegance.

Source: elegance on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.