handsome is as handsome does

Idioms  

1. How one acts is more important than how one looks. For example, He may be homely, but he's the kindest man I've ever met—handsome is as handsome does. This expression already appeared in John Ray's 1670 collection of proverbs.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

handsome is as handsome does

‘But handsome is as handsome does, as we say in the Shire; and I daresay we shall all look much the same after lying for days in hedges and ditches.’

From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien

Beauty is skin deep, and handsome is as handsome does," I paraded my English "Oh, she is a good girl every way: a fine housekeeper, good-natured, and educated.

From The Rise of David Levinsky by Cahan, Abraham

Oh, handsome is as handsome does, so they say.

From Nancy of Paradise Cottage by Watkins, Shirley

As for Mr. Frog's looks, since Aunt Polly believed that "handsome is as handsome does," she admitted that Ferdinand Frog was—as she put it—"purty as a picter."

From The Tale of Ferdinand Frog by Smith, Harry L.

She taught her that it isn't handsome is as handsome does, but the boots and shoes, after all.

From The Spread Eagle and Other Stories by Morris, Gouverneur