homely

comparative homelier · comparative more homely · superlative homeliest · superlative most homely · alternative Scotland hamely

1. Characteristic of, belonging to, or befitting a home; domestic, cosy.First known use early 14th c.

   Other homely details in the stories — preparing a salad, diapering a baby

   1981 February 14, Collectively Written Feminist Stories, “Myma Greenfield”, in Gay Community News, volume 8, number 29, page 11

   2 more examples

   An interesting illustration of this is the way in which the English flower names which were in use till very recently are being ousted by Greek ones, snapdragon becoming antirrhinum, forget-me-not becoming myosotis, etc. It is hard to see any practical reason for this change of fashion: it is probably due to an instinctive turning-away from the more homely word and a vague feeling that the Greek word is scientific.

   1946, George Orwell, Politics and the English Language

   Mowgli: "Oh, don't worry Chota, it may not be homely, but I can warm it up."

   2014 January 5, “Mowgli's Cub”, in The Jungle Book

2. CanadaUSLacking in beauty or elegance, plain in appearance, physically unattractive.

   There is none so homely but loves a looking-glass.

   1692–1717, Robert South, Twelve Sermons Preached upon Several Occasions, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London

   2 more examples

   "I can't send a young, pretty girl, or for that matter even a homely one if you'd have her, on a job like this without telling her what to expect."

   1932, Delos W. Lovelace, King Kong, published 1965, page 6

   You see, she sees herself as a starlet; I see her as a sturdy, healthy but decidedly homely kid.

   1958, Vladimir Nabokov, chapter 15, in Lolita

   Antonyms: comely

3. UKdialectalOn intimate or friendly terms with (someone); familiar; at home (with a person); intimate.

   With all these men I was right homely, and communed with them long and oft.

   1563, John Foxe, Foxe's Book of Martyrs, Chapter on William Thorpe

4. UKdialectalDomestic; tame.
5. UKdialectalPersonal; private.
6. UKdialectalFriendly; kind; gracious; cordial.
7. IndiaConservative and family-oriented.

   I am seeking a beautiful homely girl for marriage.

8. Simple; plain; familiar; unelaborate; unadorned.First known use late 14th c.

   homely fare

   4 more examples

   a homely garment

   homely manners

   Now Strephon daily entertains His Chloe in the homeliest strains.

   1731, Alexander Pope, Strephon and Chloe, Lines 211-212

   There is no simple way to define precisely a complex arrangement of parts, however homely the object may appear to be.

   2001, Sydney I. Landau, Dictionaries: The Art and Craft of Lexicography, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 167