"He is beautiful"

JFC   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 13:07 GMT
I heard sometime "you are beaufitul" refering to a man.

I asked a English teacher and she say that "beautiful" means "gay" used with a man... Is it true?
Individualist   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 13:11 GMT
Not necessarily! What and how we say things is surely subjective JFC!
Ed   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 14:25 GMT
You can say that a man is beautiful. You can also say that a woman is handsome.
Damian   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 15:30 GMT
NARCISSUS: a beautiful youth who fell in love with his own
reflection; if you can't stop admiring yourself
in a mirror then you're narcissistic. Such sibilance...
almost serpentine.

ADONIS: a handsome youth loved by Aphrodite; any
handsome young man

Then in ancient Greece there was the KOUROS.

I'm not sure if a woman would appreciate being called handsome to be honest....makes her sound a tad over dignified and scary.... like a dragon. This country had one once ...for a Prime Minister.
D   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 15:33 GMT
It is uncommon in AE to refer to a man as beautiful, but
common enough that I have an assiation for the term.
As a native AE speaker, I associate ``beautiful man'' with
``Hellenic ideal man.'' So Michelanelo's statue of
David shows a ``beautiful'' man.

It is extremely uncommon in AE to refer to a woman as
handsome. I wouldn't know how to interpret such a description.
D   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 15:34 GMT
well... assiation -- should be association...
Deborah   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 18:33 GMT
I believe the word "handsome" is not used to describe a woman as much as it used to be. I think of a handsome woman as one whose facial features are good looking, but too strong to be conventionally pretty.

I'd say "beautiful" is more commonly used to describe a man than "handsome" is used to describe woman. And calling a man beautiful doesn't mean that you're saying he's gay.
Deborah   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 18:35 GMT
to describe woman --> to describe a woman
Elaine   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 18:47 GMT
Calling a man "beautiful" is not that uncommon. My friends and I use that word all the time whenever we see pictures of Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom, or Gael Garcia Bernal. Now those men are beeyootiful!!

If you ever read Vanity Fair, a magazine that endlessly covers the comings and goings of high society, they frequently describe glamorous but not classically beautiful women as "handsome".
Doreen   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 18:53 GMT
Ed! To say a woman is handsome is an insult! It's what you say to a middle-aged woman!
Ed   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 19:09 GMT
LOL Doreen, please take it easy.
Deborah   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 19:36 GMT
Doreen, I've heard (or read) "handsome" used to describe plenty of young women. As Elaine said, it can be used to describe glamorous but not classically beautiful women.
Doreen   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 23:47 GMT
Where have you read that Deborah? In the USA? Because here in England, UK that's not the case I'm afraid! Handsome is for men and beautiful is for women.
Kilometre   Saturday, June 04, 2005, 23:53 GMT
I call men beautiful all the time...WTH?....You need to really get on your teacher; because, that's not only incorrect, but in standards, sexist and homophobic...
JJF   Sunday, June 05, 2005, 00:02 GMT
Are u a ruler?