do the handsome thing

verb

To act liberally.

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Meanings

verbdo the handsome thing (third-person singular simple present does the handsome thing, present participle doing the handsome thing, simple past did the handsome thing, past participle done the handsome thing)

present singular third person does the handsome thing · participle present doing the handsome thing · past did the handsome thing · participle past done the handsome thing

  1. To act liberally.

    Well, thought her parents and the neighbors, the old coger is going to do the handsome thing for little Sally, perhaps when she gets married, in the shape of a nice fit-out; he may give her a snug little cottage, who knows […]

    1851, Carpet-bag: A Literary Journal, volume 1
Cite this entry
APA

do the handsome thing. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/do%20the%20handsome%20thing

MLA

“do the handsome thing.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/do%20the%20handsome%20thing. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “do the handsome thing,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/do%20the%20handsome%20thing.

Source: do the handsome thing on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.