Meanings
proverb
alternative you can't tell a book by its cover · alternative don't judge a book by its cover
- figurativelyidiomaticIt is not possible to make reliable judgments about things or people by considering external appearances alone.
Synonyms: clothes don't make the man, the cowl does not make the monk, all that glitters is not gold, looks can be deceiving, appearances are deceptive, don't just scratch the surface, Anything essential is invisible to the eyes, One sees clearly only with the heart · Antonyms: clothes maketh the man, fine feathers make fine birds
Synonyms & antonyms
proverbIt is not possible to make reliable judgments about things or people by considering external appearances alone.
Similar
clothes don't make the manthe cowl does not make the monkall that glitters is not goldlooks can be deceivingappearances are deceptivedon't just scratch the surfaceAnything essential is invisible to the eyesOne sees clearly only with the heartOther things besides cream float to the top
Translations
Ancient Greek πώγων οὐ ποιεῖ φιλόσοφον
- πώγων οὐ ποιεῖ φιλόσοφον (pṓgōn ou poieî philósophon)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Arabic لَا تَحْكُم عَلَى كِتَابِ مِِنْ غِلَافِهِ
- لَا تَحْكُم عَلَى كِتَابِ مِِنْ غِلَافِهِ (lā taḥkum ʕalā kitābi miin ḡilāfihi)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Chinese Mandarin 人不可貌相
- 人不可貌相 (bùyào yǐmàoqǔrén)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Czech nesuď knihu podle obalu
- nesuď knihu podle obaluit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Danish man skal ikke skue hunden på hårene
- man skal ikke skue hunden på håreneit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Finnish ei ole koiraa karvoihin katsominen, moni kakku päältä kaunis
- ei ole koiraa karvoihin katsominenit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
- moni kakku päältä kaunisit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
French l'habit ne fait pas le moine
- l'habit ne fait pas le moineit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Greek τα φαινόμενα απατούν, το ράσο δεν κάνει τον παπά
- τα φαινόμενα απατούν (ta fainómena apatoún)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
- το ράσο δεν κάνει τον παπά (to ráso den kánei ton papá)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Hungarian ne a borító alapján ítéld meg a könyvet
- ne a borító alapján ítéld meg a könyvetit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Icelandic þú getur ekki rannsakað hund eftir hárinu
- þú getur ekki rannsakað hund eftir hárinuit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Irish go minic bíonn croí geal i gcraiceann donn
- go minic bíonn croí geal i gcraiceann donnit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Italian l'abito non fa il monaco, non giudicare un libro dalla copertina
- l'abito non fa il monacoit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
- non giudicare un libro dalla copertinait is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
- non giudicare dalle apparenzeit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Japanese 看板に偽りなし
- 看板に偽りなし (kanban ni itsuwari nashi)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Korean 겉을 보고 속을 판단하지 마라
- 겉을 보고 속을 판단하지 마라 (geoteul bogo sogeul pandanhaji mara)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Latin barba non facit philosophum
- barba non facit philosophumit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Lithuanian nespręsk apie knygą iš viršelio
- nespręsk apie knygą iš viršelioit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Norwegian Bokmål man kan ikke dømme boken etter omslaget, man skal aldri skue hunden på hårene
- man kan ikke dømme boken etter omslagetit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
- man skal aldri skue hunden på håreneit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Polish nie oceniaj książki po okładce
- nie oceniaj książki po okładceit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Portuguese não se pode julgar um livro pela capa
- não se pode julgar um livro pela capait is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Romanian nu haina îl face pe om
- nu haina îl face pe omit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Russian не суди́ о кни́ге по обло́жке
- не суди́ о кни́ге по обло́жке (ne sudí o kníge po oblóžke)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Scottish Gaelic 's tric a bhios cridhe gheal ann an seiche dhonn
- 's tric a bhios cridhe gheal ann an seiche dhonnit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Slovak nesúď knihu podľa obalu
- nesúď knihu podľa obaluit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Spanish el hábito no hace al monje
- el hábito no hace al monjeit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Swedish man skall inte döma hunden efter håren, man ska inte döma boken efter omslaget
- man skall inte döma hunden efter hårenit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
- man ska inte döma boken efter omslagetit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Tagalog mapanlinlang ang panlabas na anyo
- mapanlinlang ang panlabas na anyoit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Turkish hayvanın alacası dışında, insanın alacası içinde
- hayvanın alacası dışında, insanın alacası içindeit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Ukrainian не судіть про книгу за її обкладинкою
- не судіть про книгу за її обкладинкою (ne suditʹ pro knyhu za jiji obkladynkoju)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Urdu ذات نہ پوچھو سادھو کی؛ پوچھ لیجئے علم
- ذات نہ پوچھو سادھو کی؛ پوچھ لیجئے علم (zāt nā pūcho sādhu kī; pūch lījie ilm)it is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Vietnamese tốt gỗ hơn tốt nước sơn
- tốt gỗ hơn tốt nước sơnit is not possible to judge things by external appearances alone
Cite this entry
APA
you can't judge a book by its cover. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/you%20can't%20judge%20a%20book%20by%20its%20cover
MLA
“you can't judge a book by its cover.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/you%20can't%20judge%20a%20book%20by%20its%20cover. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “you can't judge a book by its cover,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/you%20can't%20judge%20a%20book%20by%20its%20cover.
Source: you can't judge a book by its cover on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.