pretty much

pret·ty

P0548400 (prĭt′ē)adj. pret·ti·er, pret·ti·est 1. Pleasing or attractive in a graceful or delicate way. See Synonyms at beautiful.2. Clever; adroit: a pretty maneuver.3. Very bad; terrible: in a pretty predicament; a situation that has reached a pretty pass.4. Ostensibly or superficially attractive but lacking substance or conviction: full of pretty phrases.5. Informal Considerable in size or extent: a pretty fortune.adv.1. To a fair degree; moderately: a pretty good student.2. In a pretty manner; prettily or pleasingly.n. pl. pret·ties 1. One that is pretty.2. pretties Delicate clothing, especially lingerie.tr.v. pret·tied, pret·ty·ing, pret·ties To make pretty: pretty up the house.Idiom: pretty much For the most part; mostly: "The ... matter was pretty much dying down" (John Strahinich).

[Middle English prety, clever, fine, handsome, from Old English prættig, cunning, from prætt, trick.]

pret′ti·ly adv.pret′ti·ness n.

Thesaurus

Adv.

pretty much - to some degree; "we were pretty much lost when we met the forest ranger"

pretty much

Mostly; very nearly. We're pretty much finished—just a few last-minute tweaks to the code. Support for the bill has been pretty much unanimous.See also: much, pretty

pretty much

Almost, nearly, approximately, as in Our homework was pretty much finished. This adverbial usage differs from the use of pretty for "considerable" (as in pretty penny). [c. 1800] See also: much, pretty

pretty ˈmuch/ˈwell

(British English also pretty ˈnearly) (American English also pretty ˈnear) (spoken) almost; just about: This nightclub is pretty much the best this town can offer. ♢ I’m pretty well disgusted by your behaviour. ♢ It’s worth pretty near a thousand dollars.See also: much, pretty, well

pretty much

For the most part; mostly: "The ... matter was pretty much dying down" (John Strahinich).See also: much, pretty