attractive

adjective

at·​trac·​tive ə-ˈtrak-tiv 

1

a

: arousing interest or pleasure : charming

an attractive smile

b

: appealing

an attractive offer

2

: having or relating to the power to attract

attractive forces between molecules

attractively adverb

attractiveness noun

Synonyms of attractive

• beautiful
• handsome
• cute
• lovely
• gorgeous
• pretty
• charming
• good
• stunning
• elegant

Examples of attractive in a Sentence

An attractive woman greeted us at the door.

The camera has many attractive features at a very attractive price.

Recent Examples on the Web

For a time in the nineties, Amsterdam was an attractive base; in the two-thousands, it was superseded by the Costa del Sol, in Spain; in the twenty-tens, Dubai became the honeypot. —Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 30 Apr. 2026

Like the narrator in the song who’s become bored with his attractive partner, Presley spent several years believing that his relationship with music had lost its spark. —Stuart Berman, Pitchfork, 29 Apr. 2026

Willis, and, for that matter, offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik, don’t have many attractive options at running back aside from Achane at this point. —Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 29 Apr. 2026

France is very attractive right now. —Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 28 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English attractif, attractive "drawing out foreign matter from the body, able to ingest nutriments," borrowed from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French attractif, attratif, borrowed from Late Latin attractīvus "capable of attracting, drawing toward itself," from Latin attractus, past participle of attrahere "to draw with force, compel to come" + -īvus -ive — more at attract

First Known Use

circa 1540, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for attractive

• contractive
• extractive
• inactive
• proactive
• reactive
• refractive
• subtractive
• active
• tractive
• bioactive
• hyperactive
• interactive

Kids Definition

attractive

adjective

at·​trac·​tive ə-ˈtrak-tiv 

: having the power or quality of attracting

especially : charming, pleasing

attractively adverb

attractiveness noun