homely
Part of speech: adj
Morphological type: derivation
Etymology: From Middle English homly, hoomly, hamely (“domestic, familiar, plain, unattractive”), from Old English *hāmlīċ (“of the home, domestic”), from Proto-West Germanic *haimalīk (“of or characteristic of home”), equivalent to home + -ly. Cognate with Scots hamely (“familiar, personal, private”), West Frisian heimelik, Dutch heimelijk (“secret, secretive, clandestine”), German heimlich (“secret, secretive, clandestine, undercover”), Danish hemmelig (“secret”), Swedish hemlig (“secret, concealed, privy, covert”), Faroese heimligur (“homelike, homey”), Icelandic heimlegur (“homely; worldly”).
Base: home
Affixes: -ly
Inflected forms:
form: homelier
pos: adj
tags: comparative
form: more homely
pos: adj
tags: comparative
form: homeliest
pos: adj
tags: superlative
form: most homely
pos: adj
tags: superlative
form: hamely
pos: adj
tags: alternative
Scotland
Senses:
gloss: Characteristic of, belonging to, or befitting a home; domestic, cosy.
pos: adj
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.
Other homely details in the stories — preparing a salad, diapering a baby
Mowgli: "Oh, don't worry Chota, it may not be homely, but I can warm it up."
gloss: Lacking in beauty or elegance, plain in appearance, physically unattractive.
pos: adj
tags: Canada
US
examples: There is none so homely but loves a looking-glass.
"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."
You see, she sees herself as a starlet; I see her as a sturdy, healthy but decidedly homely kid.
gloss: On intimate or friendly terms with (someone); familiar; at home (with a person); intimate.
pos: adj
tags: UK
dialectal
examples: With all these men I was right homely, and communed with them long and oft.
gloss: Domestic; tame.
pos: adj
tags: UK
dialectal
gloss: Personal; private.
pos: adj
tags: UK
dialectal
gloss: Friendly; kind; gracious; cordial.
pos: adj
tags: UK
dialectal
gloss: Conservative and family-oriented.
pos: adj
tags: India
examples: I am seeking a beautiful homely girl for marriage.
gloss: Simple; plain; familiar; unelaborate; unadorned.
pos: adj
examples: a homely garment
homely fare
homely manners
Now Strephon daily entertains
 His Chloe in the homeliest strains.
There is no simple way to define precisely a complex arrangement of parts, however homely the object may appear to be.
Derived words: homelily
homeliness
homely as a hedge fence
overhomely
unhomely
Translations:
lang: Czech
word: útulný
lang: German
word: heimelig
lang: Bulgarian
word: грозноват
roman: groznovat
lang: Czech
word: prostý
lang: Czech
word: tuctový
lang: Czech
word: ordinérní
lang: Latin
word: invenustus
lang: Russian
word: невзрачный
roman: nevzračnyj
lang: Spanish
word: mal arrostrado
lang: Spanish
word: mal gestado
lang: Thai
word: บ้านๆ