Don't judge a book by its cover
The English idiom "don't judge a book by its cover" is a metaphorical phrase that means one shouldn't prejudge the worth or value of something by its outward appearance alone. For example, "That man may look very small and insignificant, but don't judge a book by its cover – he's a very powerful man in his circle".[1]
Early reference
- In George Eliot's The Mill on the Floss (1860), Mr Tulliver uses the phrase in discussing Daniel Defoe's The History of the Devil, saying how it was beautifully bound.
- The preceding version was then publicised by the 1946 murder mystery novel by Edwin Rolfe and Lester Fuller, 'Murder in the Glass Room, in the form of "You can never tell a book by its cover."
References
- "don't judge a book by its cover". TheIdioms.com.
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