Beautiful
/ˈbjuːtɪfəl/noun
Pleasing the senses or mind aesthetically.
Did you know?“Beautiful” entered English through French and was built from the root of “beauty,” which ultimately traces back to Latin roots tied to goodness and moral excellence, showing how beauty and virtue were once entwined.
Etymological Timeline
Late Middle English
English
beautiful
“full of beauty; possessing beauty”
Old French
French
beau
“beautiful, fair”
Latin
Latin
bellus
“pretty, handsome, fine”
Vulgar Latin
VL
*bellitātivus / *bellitās
“beauty, prettiness (reconstructed forms associated with later French beauty words)”
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*dwā- / *deu̯-
“to be fitting, good, or favorable (distantly proposed background for the Latin family; details are debated)”