attractive

exquisite

ex·quis·ite   [ɪkˈskwɪzɪt]    [ɪkˈskwɪzɪt]    [ˈekskwɪzɪt]    [ˈekskwɪzɪt]  adjective
1. extremely beautiful or carefully made
• exquisite craftsmanship

• Her wedding dress was absolutely exquisite.

2. (formal) (of a feeling) strongly felt
Syn:  acute

• exquisite pain/pleasure

3. (formal) delicate and sensitive
• The room was decorated in exquisite taste.
• an exquisite sense of timing
Derived Word: exquisitely  
Word Origin:
[exquisite exquisitely] late Middle English (in the sense ‘precise’): from Latin exquisit- ‘sought out’, from the verb exquirere, from ex- ‘out’ + quaerere ‘seek’.  
Example Bank:

• Look at the exquisite craftsmanship in this vase.

handsome

hand·some [handsome handsomer handsomest]   [ˈhænsəm]    [ˈhænsəm]  adjective (hand·somer, hand·som·est) more handsome and most handsome are more common
1. (of men) attractive
Syn:  good-looking
• a handsome face
• He's the most handsome man I've ever met.

• He was aptly described as ‘ tall, dark, and handsome ’.

2. (of women) attractive, with large strong features rather than small delicate ones
• a tall, handsome woman

• The bride and groom made a handsome couple.

3. beautiful to look at
• a handsome horse/house/city

• The two of them made a handsome couple.

4. large in amount or quantity
• a handsome profit
• He was elected by a handsome majority (= a lot of people voted for him).

• a handsome cheque

5. generous
• She paid him a handsome compliment.
• It was very handsome of him to pay for the meal.
Derived Words: handsomely ▪ handsomeness  
Word Origin:
Middle English: from hand  + -some. The original sense was ‘easy to handle or use’, hence ‘suitable’ and ‘apt, clever’ (mid 16th cent.), giving rise to the current appreciatory senses (late 16th cent.).  
Synonyms:
beautiful
pretty • handsome • attractive • lovely • good-looking • gorgeous
These words all describe people who are pleasant to look at.
beautiful • (especially of a woman or girl) very pleasant to look at: ▪ She looked stunningly beautiful that night.
pretty • (especially of a girl or woman) pleasant to look at: ▪ She's got a very pretty face.
Pretty is used most often to talk about girls. When it is used to talk about a woman, it usually suggests that she is like a girl, with small, delicate features.
handsome • (of a man) pleasant to look at; (of a woman) pleasant to look at, with large strong features rather than small delicate ones: ▪ He was described as ‘ ▪ tall, dark and handsome ▪ ’.
attractive • (of a person) pleasant to look at, especially in a sexual way: ▪ She's a very attractive woman.
lovely • (of a person) beautiful; very attractive: ▪ She looked particularly lovely that night.
When you describe sb as lovely, you are usually showing that you also have a strong feeling of affection for them.
good-looking • (of a person) pleasant to look at, often in a sexual way: ▪ She arrived with a very good-looking man.
gorgeous • (informal) (of a person) extremely attractive, especially in a sexual way: ▪ You look gorgeous!
attractive or good-looking?
If you describe sb as attractive you often also mean that they have a pleasant personality as well as being pleasant to look at; good-looking just describes sb's physical appearance.
a(n) beautiful/pretty/handsome/attractive/lovely/good-looking/gorgeous girl/woman
a(n) beautiful/handsome/attractive/good-looking/gorgeous boy/man
a(n) beautiful/pretty/handsome/attractive/lovely/good-looking face  
Example Bank:
• a tall, dark, handsome stranger
• his ruggedly handsome features
• He had an interesting and rather handsome face.
• He was elected by a handsome majority ().
• He's the most handsome man I've ever met.
• I enjoyed the job, and was paid a handsome salary too.
• She was a tall, handsome woman.

• They sold the house two years later at a handsome profit.

adjective (pret·tier, pret·ti·est)
1. (especially of a woman, or a girl) attractive without being very beautiful
• a pretty face
• a pretty little girl

• You look so pretty in that dress!

2. (of places or things) attractive and pleasant to look at or to listen to without being large, beautiful or impressive
• pretty clothes
• a pretty garden
• a pretty name
more at come to a pretty pass at  pass  _n.  
Word Origin:
Old English prættig; related to Middle Dutch pertich ‘brisk, clever’, obsolete Dutch prettig ‘humorous, sporty’, from a West Germanic base meaning ‘trick’. The sense development ‘deceitful, cunning, clever, skilful, admirable, pleasing, nice’ has parallels in adjectives such as canny, fine, nice, etc.  
Thesaurus:
pretty adj.
1.
• She's a very pretty girl.
beautiful • • attractive • • good-looking • • striking • • handsome • |especially BrE lovely • |informal gorgeous • • stunning • |especially AmE, informal cute •
Opp: plain
a/an pretty/beautiful/attractive/good-looking/striking/handsome/lovely/gorgeous/stunning/cute girl/woman
a/an pretty/beautiful/attractive/good-looking/handsome/lovely/gorgeous/cute boy
a/an pretty/beautiful/attractive/good-looking/striking/handsome/lovely/cute face
2.
• Lydia— what a pretty name!
beautiful • • attractive • • picturesque • • scenic • • charming • • exquisite • |especially BrE lovely •
a/an pretty/beautiful/attractive/picturesque/charming place/town/village
a/an pretty/beautiful/attractive/exquisite/lovely design
a/an pretty/beautiful/attractive/charming/exquisite/lovely voice  
Synonyms:
beautiful
pretty • handsome • attractive • lovely • good-looking • gorgeous
These words all describe people who are pleasant to look at.
beautiful • (especially of a woman or girl) very pleasant to look at: ▪ She looked stunningly beautiful that night.
pretty • (especially of a girl or woman) pleasant to look at: ▪ She's got a very pretty face.
Pretty is used most often to talk about girls. When it is used to talk about a woman, it usually suggests that she is like a girl, with small, delicate features.
handsome • (of a man) pleasant to look at; (of a woman) pleasant to look at, with large strong features rather than small delicate ones: ▪ He was described as ‘ ▪ tall, dark and handsome ▪ ’.
attractive • (of a person) pleasant to look at, especially in a sexual way: ▪ She's a very attractive woman.
lovely • (of a person) beautiful; very attractive: ▪ She looked particularly lovely that night.
When you describe sb as lovely, you are usually showing that you also have a strong feeling of affection for them.
good-looking • (of a person) pleasant to look at, often in a sexual way: ▪ She arrived with a very good-looking man.
gorgeous • (informal) (of a person) extremely attractive, especially in a sexual way: ▪ You look gorgeous!
attractive or good-looking?
If you describe sb as attractive you often also mean that they have a pleasant personality as well as being pleasant to look at; good-looking just describes sb's physical appearance.
a(n) beautiful/pretty/handsome/attractive/lovely/good-looking/gorgeous girl/woman
a(n) beautiful/handsome/attractive/good-looking/gorgeous boy/man
a(n) beautiful/pretty/handsome/attractive/lovely/good-looking face  
Example Bank:
• She's very attractive, though not conventionally pretty.
• ‘I didn't know you could play the piano.’ ‘I'm not just a pretty face, you know!’
• A pretty little girl was standing in the doorway.
• Lydia— what a pretty name!
• She's got a very pretty face.
• That's a pretty flower— what's it called?

• You should have seen him in his swimming trunks— not a pretty sight!

cute

cute [cute cuter cutest]   [kjuːt]    [kjuːt]  adjective (cuter, cutest)

1. pretty and attractive

• a cute little baby

• (BrE) an unbearably cute picture of two kittens (= it seems sentimental )

2. (informal, especially NAmE) sexually attractive

• Check out those cute guys over there!

3. (informal, especially NAmE) clever, sometimes in an annoying way because a person is trying to get an advantage for himself or herself

• She had a really cute idea.

• Don't get cute with me!

Derived Words: cutely ▪ cuteness 

Word Origin:

early 18th cent. (in the sense ‘clever, shrewd’): shortening of acute.

Example Bank:

• How sweet/cute!

• She had a cute little nose.

• What a sweet/cute (little) baby, picture, dress, etc!

• You were such a cute baby.

good-looking

ˌgood-ˈlooking [good-looking]       adjective
(especially of people) physically attractive
Opp:  ugly
• a good-looking man/couple
• She's strikingly good-looking.  
Synonyms:
beautiful
pretty • handsome • attractive • lovely • good-looking • gorgeous
These words all describe people who are pleasant to look at.
beautiful • (especially of a woman or girl) very pleasant to look at: ▪ She looked stunningly beautiful that night.
pretty • (especially of a girl or woman) pleasant to look at: ▪ She's got a very pretty face.
Pretty is used most often to talk about girls. When it is used to talk about a woman, it usually suggests that she is like a girl, with small, delicate features.
handsome • (of a man) pleasant to look at; (of a woman) pleasant to look at, with large strong features rather than small delicate ones: ▪ He was described as ‘ ▪ tall, dark and handsome ▪ ’.
attractive • (of a person) pleasant to look at, especially in a sexual way: ▪ She's a very attractive woman.
lovely • (of a person) beautiful; very attractive: ▪ She looked particularly lovely that night.
When you describe sb as lovely, you are usually showing that you also have a strong feeling of affection for them.
good-looking • (of a person) pleasant to look at, often in a sexual way: ▪ She arrived with a very good-looking man.
gorgeous • (informal) (of a person) extremely attractive, especially in a sexual way: ▪ You look gorgeous!
attractive or good-looking?
If you describe sb as attractive you often also mean that they have a pleasant personality as well as being pleasant to look at; good-looking just describes sb's physical appearance.
a(n) beautiful/pretty/handsome/attractive/lovely/good-looking/gorgeous girl/woman
a(n) beautiful/handsome/attractive/good-looking/gorgeous boy/man
a(n) beautiful/pretty/handsome/attractive/lovely/good-looking face  
Example Bank:
• He was tall and quite good-looking.
• She was not exactly good-looking, but definitely attractive.
• She arrived with a very good-looking man.

• She's strikingly good-looking.