handsome

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(hăn'səm) pronunciation
adj., -som·er, -som·est.
  1. Pleasing and dignified in form or appearance. See synonyms at beautiful.
  2. Generous or copious: a handsome reward. See synonyms at liberal.
  3. Marked by or requiring skill dexterity: did some handsome maneuvers on the skating rink.
  4. Appropriate or fitting: a handsome location for the new school.
  5. Large: a handsome price; won by a handsome margin.

[Middle English handsom, handy : hand, hand (from Old English) + -som, n. suff.; see -some1.]

handsomely hand'some·ly adv.
handsomeness hand'some·ness n.


is applied equally to men and women who are, as Dr Johnson put it, 'beautiful with dignity'. In current use there is a tendency to use the term of women only when they are middle-aged or elderly.

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adjective

  1. Having qualities that delight the eye: attractive, beauteous, beautiful, comely, fair, good-looking, gorgeous, lovely, pretty, pulchritudinous, ravishing, sightly, stunning. Scots bonny. Idioms: easy on the eyes. See beautiful/ugly.
  2. Characterized by bounteous giving: free, freehanded, generous, lavish, liberal, munificent, openhanded, unsparing, unstinting. See give/take/reciprocity.


adj

Definition: abundant
Antonyms: insignificant, meager, poor, small, stingy, ungiving

adj

Definition: attractive
Antonyms: homely, ugly, unattractive

Word Tutor:

handsome

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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: Pleasing and dignified in appearance.

pronunciation I'm not handsome in the classical sense. — Sylvester Stallone

Tutor's tip: The "handsome" (good-looking or attractive) handyman repaired the broken wheel on the "hansom" ( a horse-drawn carriage).

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Random House Word Menu:

categories related to 'handsome'

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Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
For a list of words related to handsome, see:

  See crossword solutions for the clue Handsome.
Translations:

Handsome

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Dansk (Danish)
adj. - smuk, køn, pæn, anselig, klækkelig

Nederlands (Dutch)
knap (man), royaal, gul, statig (vrouw), passend, bekwaam

Français (French)
adj. - beau (un homme), beau/belle (un sac, une ville), beau et imposant (un bâtiment), belle (une femme), bon (un dividende, une somme), généreux (une récompense)

Deutsch (German)
adj. - gutaussehend, schön, großzügig, stattlich

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - ωραίος, γοητευτικός, όμορφος, σημαντικός, απλόχερος, γενναιόδωρος

Italiano (Italian)
bello, generoso

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - bonito, generoso, elegante

Русский (Russian)
красивый, значительный, щедрый

Español (Spanish)
adj. - hermoso, bello, elegante

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - stilig, vacker, ansenlig, skicklig

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
英俊的, 慷慨的, 大方的

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 英俊的, 慷慨的, 大方的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 잘생긴, 당당한, 상당한, 능숙한, 알맞은

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 顔だちのよい, ハンサムな, 堂々とした, 立派な, 気前がよい, かなりの, 器用な, 手厚い

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) ملائم, كبير, ضخم, بارع, كريم, سخي, وسيم, مليح‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮נאה, גברי, ניכר, מושך, הגון, נדיב‬


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