Scotland · adjective, adverb, and noun
bonnie
Pretty, attractive, pleasing, or beautiful.
Uses your device’s built-in voice. Pronunciation is approximate because available voices and Scottish accents vary.
What bonnie means
Bonnie is used for a person, place, object, or sight that is attractive or pleasing. It can suggest warmth and affection as well as physical beauty.
How it is used
The word appears in everyday speech, songs, literature, place descriptions, and affectionate expressions. Bonny and bonnie are both familiar spellings.
- Part of speech
- adjective, adverb, and noun
- Pronunciation
- /ˈbɔnɪ/; vowel quality varies by dialect
- Register
- Familiar Scots and Scottish English; often affectionate.
- Variants
- bonny, bonie
Examples
Each example is followed by its intended plain-English meaning.
That's a bonnie garden.
That's a beautiful or attractive garden.
What a bonnie wee dog.
What a lovely little dog.
What to watch for
Bonnie often sounds warmer and more affectionate than the neutral word attractive.
Related Scottish words
Definition source: Dictionaries of the Scots Language: bonny. LocalMean paraphrases the source and adds fresh examples and usage guidance.