handsome is as handsome does
proverb

- how one acts is more important than how one looks

(American Heritage Dictionary)

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ORIGIN

Handsome is as handsome does is a very old proverb. The first known recording was in Oliver Goldsmith’s 1766 novel The Vicar of Wakefield. The vicar’s wife describes her children as "handsome enough, if they are good enough; for handsome is that handsome does."

The concept behind this saying can be found much earlier however, such as in The Wife of Bath's Tale, a 14th century novel by author Geoffrey Chaucer, who is considered by some to be the father of English literature.

The Bible even addresses this topic, as seen in the Book of Samuel 16:7: But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart."

Modern philosopher Forrest Gump, a character played by Tom Hanks in the very popular same-named movie, had his own version of the proverb: Stupid is as stupid does. In other words, stupidity is a matter of deeds, not looks. And that means even people who appear to be smart can be stupid. In the case of Forrest, he's saying "I might look stupid, but I'm not."

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SYNONYMS

beauty is only skin deep, never judge a book by its cover

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Practice OWAD in a conversation:

"He might wear thousand-dollar Armani suits, but HANDSOME IS AS HANDSOME DOES."