pulchritudinousadj.
/ˌpʌlkrᵻˈtjuːdᵻnəs/, /ˌpʌlkrᵻˈtʃuːdᵻnəs/, U.S. /ˌpəlkrəˈt(j)udn̩əs/ΚΠ
1706 T. D'Urfey Wonders in Sun iii. 45 And Madam, to you his..Majesty, presents..a dozen of Frogs pulchritudinous, of Value inestimable, which being dry'd, beaten to a Powder, and drunk in Mornings Dew, have Vertue to renew Youth and Beauty.
2. Originally U.S. (chiefly literary and humorous). Esp. of a woman: beautiful, attractive.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beauty > [adjective]
smickerc725
faireOE
lieflyOE
sheenOE
wenlichc1000
wlitic1000
lovesomec1175
lustya1240
flourisheda1375
lovelya1400
weenc1400
beauteous1435
beautifulc1443
finec1450
pulchriousa1500
speciousa1513
shanda1525
speciosea1525
pulchrousc1540
bonny1580
beauty1598
lovelike1621
killing1634
florid1642
beautied1830
stunning1849
fairsome1862
pulchritudinous1877
beaut1894
loverly1907
society > morality > virtue > [adjective] > morally excellent
good-natured1561
pulchritudinous1877
1877 Puck (N.Y.) 5 Dec. 10/3 Fanny Davenport, the pulchritudinous and unpoetic, will play Shaksperian [sic] comedy..at Booth's Theatre next week.
1912 L. J. Vance Destroying Angel xv. 217 I love my love with a P because he's Perfectly Pulchritudinous and Possesses the Power of Pleasing.
1963 Punch 13 Feb. 246/1 Such nice, pulchritudinous girls!
1994 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 25 Aug. 22/7 He is helped by a bevy of pulchritudinous but sleazy women, who have a way with wearing clingy lingerie whenever their presence is required in a scene.
2005 People Weekly 4 Apr. 33 In a featherweight spoof of Charlie's Angels, a pulchritudinous covert crime fighter..falls for the world's leading female criminal.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1706