judge by appearances
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 4 examplesidiom
to judge people by their appearance; to judge a book by its cover
formalUsed to criticize superficial judgment based on looks rather than substance or character. Often used in negative constructions (不要/不能/不要以貌取人).
Wǒ我
men们
bù不
néng能
yǐ以
mào貌
qǔ取
rén人
。
We shouldn't judge people by their appearance.
Yǐ以
mào貌
qǔ取
rén人
shì是
bù不
duì对
de的
。
Judging by appearance is wrong.
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Tā他
zǒng总
shì是
yǐ以
mào貌
qǔ取
rén人
，
suǒ所
yǐ以
cuò错
guò过
le了
hěn很
duō多
yǒu有
cái才
huá华
de的
rén人
。
He always judges by appearance, so he missed many talented people.
Sú俗
huà话
shuō说
，
rén人
bù不
kě可
mào貌
xiàng相
，
hǎi海
shuǐ水
bù不
kě可
dǒu斗
liáng量
。
As the saying goes, you can't judge a person by their appearance, just as you can't measure the ocean with a bushel.