• IPA: /kjuːt/, /kɪu̯t/

cute (comparative cuter, superlative cutest)

1. Possessing physical features, behaviors, personality traits or other properties that are mainly attributed to infants and small or cuddly animals; e.g. fair, dainty, round, and soft physical features, disproportionately large eyes and head, playfulness, fragility, helplessness, curiosity or shyness, innocence, affectionate behavior.

   Our reaction to cute attributes is understood as the way nature ensures mammals care for their young.

2. Lovable, charming, attractive or pleasing, especially in a youthful, dainty, quaint or fun-spirited way.

   Let's go to the mall and look for cute girls.

3. Sexually attractive or pleasing; gorgeous.

   He's got such cute buns.

4. Affected or contrived to charm; mincingly clever; precious; cutesy.

   The actor's performance was too cute for me. All that mugging to the audience killed the humor.

   Don't get cute with me, boy!

5. Mentally keen or discerning (See also acute)

   Synonyms: clever, shrewd

   • ca. 1850. Anonymous, "Turpin Hero" (broadside ballad, probably originally dating to 18th century)

     Then Dick Turpin being so very cute,
     He hid his money in his boot.

   • 1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019:

     "The police are cute enough, of course, to choose either a Roman Catholic or a materialist as the magistrate."

   Cute trick, but can you do it consistently?

6. (especially, mathematics) Evincing cleverness; surprising in its elegance or unconventionality (but of limited importance).

   There's a cute alternative proof of this using lambda calculus.

• (having features mainly attributed to infants and small or cuddly animals) endearing
• (attractive or pleasing in a youthful, dainty, quaint or fun-spirited way) pretty

• French: mignon
• German: goldig, niedlich, süß
• Italian: carino, grazioso
• Portuguese: fofo
• Russian: ми́лый
• Spanish: lindo, precioso, gracioso, chulo, pituso, bonito

• French: joli, mignon
• Italian: carino
• Portuguese: bonitinho, giro (colloquial)
• Russian: симпати́чный
• Spanish: mono (colloquial)