ProverbHuman NatureFrench origin

La beauté ne se mange pas en salade

Meaning: Good looks alone don't put food on the table or make a good partner.

Literally: Beauty can't be eaten in a salad

Example: “Il est très beau, mais il ne fait rien de ses journées. La beauté ne se mange pas en salade.” — He's very handsome, but he does nothing all day: beauty is only skin deep.

Equivalents in English, German, and Russian

  • English: Beauty is only skin deep
  • German: Schönheit vergeht, Tugend besteht (literally: Beauty fades, virtue remains)
  • Russian: С лица не воду пить (S litsa ne vodu pit') (literally: You don't drink water from a face)

Origin: A practical, kitchen-table answer to anyone who chooses a partner for looks alone.

More proverbs about Human Nature

Explore another collection: Compliments & Insults

Compliments and insults from around the world, from the sweet to the savage.

  • Espèce de patate You dim bulb — a potato being the very picture of inert, unthinking stodginess.
  • Quel râleur / quelle râleuse You never stop moaning — everything is a complaint, nothing is ever good enough.
  • Peau de vache A mean, difficult, and unpleasant person — tough and unyielding like tanned hide.

Browse all compliments & insults →

Keep exploring

Explore all proverbs →