What it means
Cornish dialect for handsome but used far more broadly to mean lovely, beautiful, or really great. It can describe a sunset over the coast, a well-built boat, a cream tea, or a genuinely good person. Often paired with proper for maximum enthusiasm. Proper ansome is as good as it gets in Cornish compliments and covers everything from scenery to scones.
Usage examples
"The view from Tintagel this morning was proper ansome, I tell you. Sun coming through the mist and the sea all turquoise like something off a postcard."
"Proper ansome pasty that, my dear, best one I've had in weeks down at the harbour."
"Sun came out over Mevagissey this afternoon, ansome day for a walk on the cliff path."
"That little cove down by St Agnes was proper ansome tonight, sea all glassy and the sky doing its pink show-off thing."
"You’m an ansome bugger for bringing us a pasty after that shift, cheers my lovely."
Where it comes from
It’s a dialect form of handsome used in Cornwall and across bits of the West Country, with the initial h often dropped in speech. Over time it stretched way beyond looks and became a big warm compliment for anything lovely, tasty, impressive, or just plain good-hearted.
