Definition for: handsome

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English

Etymology

From hand + -some . It at first meant dexterous ; compare Dutch handzaam , dexterous , ready , limber , manageable , and English handy .

English

Adjective

handsome (Comparative: handsomer, Superlative: handsomest)

1. (Obsolete): Dexterous; skillful; handy; ready; convenient; -- applied to things as persons.

   Quotations

   • That they [engines of war] be both easy to be carried and handsome to be moved and turned about. - Robynson (Utopia)
   • For a thief it is so handsome as it may seem it was first invented for him. - Spenser

2. Agreeable to the eye or to correct taste; having a pleasing appearance or expression; attractive; having symmetry and dignity; comely; -- expressing more than pretty, and less than beautiful;

   Examples: a handsome man or woman; a handsome garment, house, tree, horse; MW10 treats it as synonymous with beautiful in this sense.

   Usage of handsome for a woman implies that she is not beautiful at all in the sense of female beauty.

3. Suitable or fit in action; marked with propriety and ease; graceful; becoming; appropriate

   Examples: a handsome style, etc.

   Quotations

   • Easiness and handsome address in writing. - Felton

4. Evincing a becoming generosity or nobleness of character; liberal; generous.

   Quotations

   • Handsome is as handsome does. - Old Proverb

5. Ample; moderately large.

   Quotations

   • He . . . accumulated a handsome sum of money. - V. Knox

   Derived expressions

   • (Colloquial): To do the handsome thing , to act liberally.

   Synonyms

   • Handsome, Pretty.
   • Pretty applies to things comparatively small, which please by their delicacy and grace; as, a pretty girl, a pretty flower, a pretty cottage.
   • Handsome rises higher, and is applied to objects on a larger scale. We admire what is handsome , we are pleased with what is pretty . The word is connected with hand, and has thus acquired the idea of training, cultivation, symmetry, and proportion, which enters so largely into our conception of handsome . Thus Drayton makes mention of handsome players, meaning those, who are well trained; and hence we speak of a man's having a handsome address, which is the result of culture; of a handsome horse or dog, which implies well proportioned limbs; of a handsome face, to which, among other qualities, the idea of proportion and a graceful contour are essential; of a handsome tree, and a handsome house or villa. So, from this idea of proportion or suitableness, we have, with a different application, the expressions, a handsome fortune, a handsome offer.

Translations

Dexterous; skillful (1)

Agreeable to the eye or to correct taste (2)

Marked with propriety and ease (3)

Generous (4)

Moderately large (5)

Transitive verb

to handsome

1. (Obsolete): To render handsome. - Donne

Other Translations for "handsome"

Braille 6 Dot
Braille 8 Dot
Sign Language Spelling
Morse Code		handsome
Hex		e8 e1 ee e4 f3 6f ed 65
Pig Latin		andsomehay

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