How to Say "Good Looking" in French

beau

/bo/

The English phrase 'good looking' is translated into French as beau.

beau is used to describe someone who is physically attractive or handsome.

Which one should you use?

While beau can mean 'handsome' for men, it is also the standard word for 'beautiful' when describing women ( belle ).

The feminine form of beau is belle. The masculine plural form of beau is beaux. The feminine plural form of beau is belles.

/bo/

English speakers often mistakenly use the masculine form beau to describe a woman, but the feminine form belle must be used instead.

In a sarcastic sense, C'est beau ! can be used to express frustration or disbelief, similar to saying 'Great!' when something goes wrong in English.
The expression faire le beau is used to describe someone who is showing off or posing to get attention, similar to a dog acting proud.
The English word 'beau', meaning a male admirer or boyfriend, is borrowed directly from the French word beau.

Il est très beau.
He is very good-looking.
This sentence shows how to use beau to describe a third-person singular subject.
Tatoeba #6465556 by Aiji, translation #1562118 by CM
Tom est très beau.
Tom is really good-looking.
This sentence shows how to use beau with a specific name.
Tatoeba #5671431 by Aiji, translation #5130173 by CK
Je ne suis pas beau.
I'm not good-looking.
This sentence shows how to use beau in a negative statement about oneself.
Tatoeba #4856953 by sacredceltic, translation #3330356 by CK
Il est très beau
He is very good looking.
Elle est belle comme une rose
She is as beautiful as a rose.
Ils ont des visages beaux et symétriques
They have beautiful and symmetrical faces.
Cet homme est séduisant
This man is good looking.
Elle est séduisante dans cette robe
She looks attractive in that dress.
Il est très séduisant avec son sourire charmant
He is very attractive with his charming smile.
Il est vraiment canon
He is really good looking.
La nouvelle prof est vraiment canon
The new teacher is really hot.
Elle est trop canon dans cette tenue
She looks too hot in that outfit.
Mon voisin est vraiment mignon
My neighbor is really good looking.
Elle est mignonne comme un petit chaton
She is as cute as a little kitten.
Tu es trop mignonne avec cette coiffure
You look so cute with that hairstyle.
9 more sentences on Tatoeba

Chloé and Hugo are looking at a photo in a magazine.

Hugo

Regarde cet acteur, il est vraiment beau.
Look at this actor, he is really handsome.
Chloé

Oui, il est très beau.
Yes, he is very good looking.
Hugo

Tu le trouves charmant ?
Do you find him charming?
Chloé

Absolument, il est magnifique.
Absolutely, he is magnificent.

Sources

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