Syn. -- 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.