繼承自中古英語handsum、hondsom，等同於hand +-some。對照荷蘭語handzaam、德國低地德語handsaam。原意是指「容易處理和使用」，因此便出現了「合適的」和「靈巧的，聰明的」等含義（16世紀中期），並產生了表示欣賞的現代化含義（16世紀晚期）。
handsome (比較級morehandsome或handsomer，最高級mosthandsome或handsomest)
- 外表英俊、帥氣、有吸引力，好看
- Template:RQ:Pepys Diary
1916，On H.R. 4683, site for post-office building at Chicago, Ill，頁117:On the opposite side of the street, on the corner, is the city hall, a veryhandsome building of brick and stone.- （請為本引文添加中文翻譯）
1917，Anton Chekhov，譯者 Constance Garnett,The Darling and Other Stories[1]，Project Gutenberg,→ISBN，頁71:The mother, Ekaterina Pavlovna, who at one time had beenhandsome, but now, asthmatic, depressed, vague, and over-feeble for her years, tried to entertain me with conversation about painting. Having heard from her daughter that I might come to Shelkovka, she had hurriedly recalled two or three of my landscapes which she had seen in exhibitions in Moscow, and now asked what I meant to express by them.- （請為本引文添加中文翻譯）
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2006，Richard Leviton，The Gods in Their Cities，iUniverse,→ISBN，頁44:Often, human mortals describe their visits to the Tuatha's [places] in similar terms: they were great bright places, occupied by exceedinglyhandsome men and women, that sported wonderful crystal chairs, inexhaustible supplies of mead or ale ...- （請為本引文添加中文翻譯）
That is onehandsome tree you've got there.- （請為本使用例添加中文翻譯）
