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comely

adj
/ˈkʌmli/US

Etymology

The adjective is derived from Middle English comly, comli, cumly, cumlich (“of a person: beautiful, handsome, etc.; of noble birth, bearing, or character; of behaviour: appropriate, becoming; of an event: convenient; favourable; of a thing: beautiful, wonderful; fitting, proper”), from Old English cymlīċ, cȳmlīċ (“beautiful, comely; splendid; convenient”), from cȳme (“beautiful, comely; splendid; exquisite, fine”) + -līċ (suffix meaning ‘like; relating to’ forming adjectives). Cȳme is derived from Proto-Germanic *kūmiz (“delicate; feeble”), from *kūmalīkaz (“dear; pitiful”), probably related to *kūmaz, *kūmijaz (“pitiful; frail, weak”), from Proto-Indo-European *gewH- (“to call, name; to call on, invoke; to cry, cry out”). The word was influenced by come (verb). The verb is derived from the adjective. Cognates Middle Dutch komelick, komlick Middle High German gomelīh, komelīh

  1. inherited from *gewH-✻ — “to call, name; to call on, invoke; to cry, cry out”
  2. inherited from *kūmiz✻ — “delicate; feeble”
  3. inherited from cymlīċ
  4. inherited from comly

Definitions

  1. Attractive

    Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.

    • a comely woman
    • Not once perceive their foul disfigurement, / But boaſt themſelves more comely than before

  2. Pleasing to the feelings or senses

    Pleasing to the feelings or senses; agreeable, nice, pleasant.

    • Oh hovv comely it is and hovv reviving / To the Spirits of juſt men long oppreſt! / VVhen God into the hands of thir deliverer / Puts invincible might
    • [T]hey said many kind and comely things about the people they had met.

  3. To embellish or grace (something).

    • One diligent seruiture, skilfull to waight, / more comelieth thy table than other some eight, / That stand for to listen, or gasing about, / not minding their dutie, within nor without.
  4. ›+ 1 more definition

    1. Synonym of comelily (“in a comely manner

      Synonym of comelily (“in a comely manner: in an attractive or pleasing manner; in a manner which meets accepted moral or social norms”).

      • So ſlides he dovvne vppon his greyned bat [i.e., a walking stick]; / And comely diſtant ſits he by her ſide, […]
      • So may men praiſe their Preacher, he ſpeaks pertinently, or he contrives vvittily, or he ſpeaks comely, […]

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for comely. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA