cute

1 of 2

adjective

ˈkyüt 

cuter; cutest

1

a

: clever or shrewd often in an underhanded manner

" … he's a true patriot and statesman … and a most particular cute lawyer."

—Thomas Chandler Haliburton

b

: impertinent, smart-alecky

Don't get cute with me.

2

: attractive or pretty especially in a childish, youthful, or delicate way

a cute puppy

a cute smile

3

: obviously straining for effect

The movie's too cute to be taken seriously.

cutely adverb

cuteness noun

cute

2 of 2

noun

: the quality or state of being cute or cutesy

also : an instance of cuteness or cutesiness

—usually used in plural

a movie suffering from a case of the cutes

Did you know?

The Unlikely Evolution of Cute

Cute is a word whose meaning has gone has gone through a thorough historical transformation. There is no argument about cute’s derivation: it is a shortening of acute (and was sometimes actually spelled ‘cute). Acute has meant “clever, shrewd” since Shakespeare’s time and has had a set of other meanings as well, but it has never been defined as “attractive or pretty.” The contraction cute first appears in the early 18th century, but only a century later does it begin to take on its distinctive modern meaning; even after 1900 children were still being called cute as a compliment to their intelligence. (Compare the contemporaneous word cunning, with its strikingly similar ambiguity.) A few years into the century, we start to see the word—finally!—in descriptions of puppies and kittens. But the original sense hasn’t completely vanished; in such sentences as “Don’t get cute with me,” cute has nothing to do with adorable sweetness.

Synonyms

Adjective

• artful
• beguiling
• cagey
• cagy
• crafty
• cunning
• designing
• devious
• dodgy [chiefly British]
• foxy
• guileful
• scheming
• shrewd
• slick
• sly
• subtle
• tricky
• wily

Examples of cute in a Sentence

Adjective

she's very nice, but she's not afraid to get cute when there's something she wants

we're having a serious discussion here, so cut the cute remarks

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The smallest monkey in the world, these cute critters weigh in at just over 4 ounces. —Allison Futterman, Discover Magazine, 6 Nov. 2024

This floor-through townhouse co-op has a lot of cute details, like the working brick fireplace and the skylights in the kitchen and bathroom. —Clio Chang, Curbed, 5 Nov. 2024

Noun

How friggin' cute is that? —Marci Robin, Allure, 16 June 2022

This is high-octane cute. —Ali Barthwell, Vulture, 25 Aug. 2021

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Noun

short for acute

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1731, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1965, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing cute

• (as) cute as a button
• cute as the dickens
• meet cute

Kids Definition

cute

adjective

ˈkyüt

cuter; cutest

1

: clever sense 3, shrewd

they're not cute enough to fool me

2

: attractive especially in looks or actions

a cute baby

a cute outfit

3

a

: clever in an appealing way

a cute idea

b

: wise sense 3

don't get cute with me

cutely adverb

cuteness noun