elegant en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ˈeləɡənt/ (Australia, New-Zealand)
- /ˈɛləɡənt/ (Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
From Late Middle English elegaunt, from Middle French elegant, ultimately from Latin ēlegāns, collateral form of present participle of ēligere, from ex- (“out of, from”) + legō (“choose, select, appoint”).
Meanings
-
Characterised by or exhibiting elegance; having grace, refinement, or tasteful simplicity.
You could just use ordinary shop-bought kecap manis to marinade the meat, but making your own is easy, has a far more elegant fragrance and is, above all, such a great brag! Flavouring kecap manis is an intensely personal thing, so try this version now and next time cook the sauce down with crushed, split lemongrass and a shredded lime leaf.
2015 October 27, Matt Preston, The Simple Secrets to Cooking Everything Better, Plum, →ISBN, page 192:
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Characterised by minimalism and intuitiveness while preserving exactness and precision.
an elegant solution
"For myself, because of the baggage of 30 years of balkanisation, I think the elegant solution is to take operations back into the public sector. It will mean you can have a whole-industry approach to running the railway, unencumbered by contractual differences."
2025 February 19, Paul Clifton, “I am absolutely committed to reforming the railway”, in RAIL, number 1029, page 41:
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(Ireland, archaic, colloquial) Fine; doing well.
'An' how are ye, Jemmie—how's every inch iv you?' enquired Moggy of the boy, when his agitation was a little blown over. 'I'm elegant, thank ye,' he answered; 'an' what's the matther wid ye all? I cum through the kitchen, and seen no one.'
1863, Sheridan Le Fanu, The House by the Churchyard:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| more elegant | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| most elegant | Degree=Sup | lexicographic |
Antonyms
sloppy · haphazard · clumsy · inelegant · inelegant
Deriveds
overelegant · elegance · unelegant · elegant crested tinamou · piss-elegant · ultraelegant · hyperelegant · elegantness · elegant variation · elegant tit · elegancy · swellegant · elegant quail · elegant parrot · superelegant · elegant sufficiency
Relateds
Synonyms
graceful · dressy · classy · neat · refined
Translations (73)
grc κομψός (exhibiting elegance) · ja 高雅な (exhibiting elegance) · he מְהֻדָּר (exhibiting elegance) · la venustus (exhibiting elegance) · ur شائسته (exhibiting elegance) · cmn 高雅 (exhibiting elegance) · nl gracieus (exhibiting elegance) · ru элега́нтный (exhibiting elegance) · hu előkelő (exhibiting elegance) · ja 典雅な (exhibiting elegance) · ota نازك (exhibiting elegance) · es paltón (exhibiting elegance) · as শুৱলা (exhibiting elegance) · ar أَنِيق (exhibiting elegance) · de schick (exhibiting elegance) · cmn 文雅 (exhibiting elegance) · es glaxo (exhibiting elegance) · unm ahinakwsi (exhibiting elegance) · cs elegantní (exhibiting elegance) · sv elegant (exhibiting elegance) · nl sierlijk (exhibiting elegance) · mk елега́нтен (exhibiting elegance) · it elegante (exhibiting elegance) · ko 우아한 (exhibiting elegance) · hu elegáns (exhibiting elegance) · gl elegante (exhibiting elegance) · es elegante (exhibiting elegance) · la facētus (exhibiting elegance) · mi huatau (exhibiting elegance) · mk пре́финет (exhibiting elegance) · es chic (exhibiting elegance) · la ēlegans (exhibiting elegance) · he אֶלֶגַנְטִי (exhibiting elegance) · sa रसिक (exhibiting elegance) · ja 優雅な (exhibiting elegance) · pl wytworny (exhibiting elegance) · ar ظَرِيف (exhibiting elegance) · ru шика́рный (exhibiting elegance) · mi tōrire (exhibiting elegance) · tr şık (exhibiting elegance) · ca elegant (exhibiting elegance) · da elegant (exhibiting elegance) · hy էլեգանտ (exhibiting elegance) · fr élégant (exhibiting elegance) · de elegant (exhibiting elegance) · tr kibar (exhibiting elegance) · hi शोभनीय (exhibiting elegance) · km ឆើតឆាយ (exhibiting elegance) · tr zarif (exhibiting elegance) · bg изискан (exhibiting elegance) · fi aistikas (exhibiting elegance) · es picudo (exhibiting elegance) · vi tao nhã (exhibiting elegance) · eo eleganta (exhibiting elegance) · ckb شۆخ (exhibiting elegance) · nl elegant (exhibiting elegance) · mi purotu (exhibiting elegance) · ga galánta (exhibiting elegance) · hy նրբագեղ (exhibiting elegance) · fi hienostunut (exhibiting elegance) · ru изя́щный (exhibiting elegance) · pl elegancki (exhibiting elegance) · fi elegantti (exhibiting elegance) · bg елегантен (exhibiting elegance) · sh elegantan (exhibiting elegance) · vi thanh lịch (exhibiting elegance) · mk о́тмен (exhibiting elegance) · kea janóta (exhibiting elegance) · la lautus (exhibiting elegance) · el κομψός (exhibiting elegance) · cmn 典雅 (exhibiting elegance) · pt elegante (exhibiting elegance) · ja 立派な (exhibiting elegance)