hand (h nd)n.1. a. The terminal part of the human arm located below the forearm, used for grasping and holding and consisting of the wrist, palm, four fingers, and an opposable thumb. b. A homologous or similar part in other animals, as the terminal part of the forelimb in certain vertebrates. 2. A unit of length equal to 4 inches (10.2 centimeters), used especially to specify the height of a horse. 3. Something suggesting the shape or function of the human hand, especially: a. Any of the rotating pointers used as indexes on the face of a mechanical clock. b. A pointer, as on a gauge or dial. 5. Lateral direction indicated according to the way in which one is facing: at my right hand. 6. a. A style or individual sample of writing. b. A signature: put my hand to the contract. 7. A round of applause to signify approval. 8. Physical assistance; help: gave me a hand with the bags. 9. hands Sports A handball in soccer. 10. Games a. The cards held in a card game by a given player at any time. b. The number of cards dealt each player; the deal. c. A player or participant in a card game: We need a fourth hand for bridge. d. A portion or section of a game during which all the cards dealt out are played: a hand of poker. 11. a. One who performs manual labor: a factory hand. b. One who is part of a group or crew: the ship's hands. 12. A participant in an activity, often one who specializes in a particular activity or pursuit: an old hand at labor negotiations. 13. a. The degree of immediacy of a source of information; degree of reliability: heard the scandalous tale at third hand. b. The strength or force of one's position: negotiated from a strong hand. 14. a. Possession, ownership, or keeping. Often used in the plural: The books should be in your hands by noon. b. Power; jurisdiction; care: The defendant's fate is in the hands of the jury. Dinner is in the chef's hands. 15. a. Involvement or participation: "In all this was evident the hand of the counterrevolutionaries" John Reed. b. An influence or effect: The manager had a hand in all major decisions. c. Evidence of craft or artistic skill: can see the hand of a genius even in the lighter poems. 16. An aptitude or ability: I tried my hand at decorating. 17. The aesthetic feel or tactile quality of something, such as a fabric, textile, or carpeting, that indicates its fineness, texture, and durability. 18. A manner or way of performing something: a light hand with makeup. 19. a. Permission or a promise, especially a pledge to wed. b. A commitment or agreement, especially when sealed by a handshake; one's word: You have my hand on that. v. hand·ed, hand·ing, hands v.tr.1. To give or pass with or as if with the hands; transmit: Hand me your keys. 2. To aid, direct, or conduct with the hands: The usher handed the patron to a reserved seat. 3. Nautical To roll up and secure (a sail); furl. 4. Sports a. To give (the ball) directly to a teammate, as in football. Often used with off. b. To carry, strike, or propel (the ball) with the hand or arm in violation of the rules in soccer. v.intr. Sports To make a handoff, as in football. Often used with off. Phrasal Verbs: hand down1. To bequeath to one's heirs. 2. To make and pronounce (an official decision, especially a court verdict). hand on To turn over to another. hand out1. To distribute freely; disseminate. 2. To administer or deal out. hand over To release or relinquish to another. hand up To deliver (an indictment) to a higher judicial authority. Idioms: at hand1. Close by; near. 2. Soon in time; imminent: Retribution is at hand. at the hand/hands of By or through the agency of: favors he received at the hands of his uncle. by hand By using the hands; manually. get/lay (one's) hands on To get possessioon of; acquire or obtain. hand and foot With concerted, never-ending effort: had to wait on them hand and foot. hand in/and glove On intimate terms or in close association: "The folklore of American academia says that publishing and teaching go hand in glove" Edward B. Fiske. hand in hand In cooperation; jointly. hand it to Informal To give credit to: You've got to hand it to her; she knows what she's doing. hand over fist At a tremendous rate: made money hand over fist. hands down1. With no trouble; easily. 2. Indisputably; unquestionably. in hand1. In one's possession: arrived with the contract in hand. 2. Under control: kept the tense situation in hand. 3. Under consideration: gave her attention to the matter in hand. 4. In preparation or process: With the work finally in hand, we began to see progress. 5. Sports Remaining to be played by one team but not by another: Their team is ahead in the standings, but our team has two games in hand. off (one's) hands No longer under one's jurisdiction, within one's responsibility, or in one's care: We finally got that project off our hands. on hand1. Present; available: Are there enough people on hand to hold a meeting? 2. About to happen; imminent; What is on hand for this evening? on/upon (one's) hands In one's possession, often as an imposed responsibility or burden: Now they have the grandchildren on their hands. on the one hand As one point of view; from one standpoint. on the other hand As another point of view; from another standpoint. out of hand1. Out of control: Employee absenteeism has gotten out of hand. 2. At once; immediately. 3. Over and done with; finished. 4. Uncalled for or improper; indiscreet. to hand1. Nearby. 2. In one's possession.
[Middle English, from Old English.]
hand er n. handless adj. | hand A. phalanges B. metacarpus C. carpus |
hand Noun 1. the part of the body at the end of the arm, consisting of a thumb, four fingers, and a palm Related adjective manual 2. a person's style of writing: scrolls written in her own hand 3. the influence a person or thing has over a particular situation: the hand of the military in shaping policy was obvious 4. a part in some activity: I remember with gratitude Fortune's hand in starting my collection 5. assistance: give me a hand with the rice 6. a round of applause: give a big hand to the most exciting duo in the game 7. consent to marry someone: he asked for her hand in marriage 8. a manual worker 9. a member of a ship's crew 10. a pointer on a dial or gauge, esp. on a clock 11. a. the cards dealt in one round of a card game b. one round of a card game 12. a position indicated by its location to the side of an object or the observer: on the right hand 13. a contrasting aspect or condition: on the other hand 14. source: I had experienced at first hand many management styles 15. a person who creates something: a good hand at baking 16. a unit of length equalling four inches, used for measuring the height of horses 17. by hand a. by manual rather than mechanical means b. by messenger: the letter was delivered by hand 18. from hand to mouth with no food or money in reserve: living from hand to mouth 19. hand in glove in close association 20. hand over fist steadily and quickly: losing money hand over fist 21. in hand a. under control b. receiving attention: the business in hand c. available in reserve: Pakistan have a game in hand 22. keep one's hand in to continue to practise something 23. (near) at hand very close 24. on hand close by; available 25. out of hand a. beyond control b. decisively, without possible reconsideration: he dismissed the competition out of hand 26. show one's hand to reveal one's plans 27. to hand accessible Verb 1. to pass or give by the hand or hands 2. hand it to someone to give credit to someone handless adj
Hand a round of applause, 1590; something resembling a hand in appearance or function. See also bunch.Examples: hand of applause, 1590; of bananas, 1881; of bridge; of cards, 1630; of herrings [five], 1861; of oranges [five], 1851; of tobacco, 1726; of whist, 1771.
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms | Noun | 1. |  hand - the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb; "he had the hands of a surgeon"; "he extended his mitt"human, human being, homo, man - any living or extinct member of the family Hominidae characterized by superior intelligence, articulate speech, and erect carriage arm - a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb right hand, right - the hand that is on the right side of the body; "he writes with his right hand but pitches with his left"; "hit him with quick rights to the body" left hand, left - the hand that is on the left side of the body; "jab with your left" palm, thenar - the inner surface of the hand from the wrist to the base of the fingers finger - any of the terminal members of the hand (sometimes excepting the thumb); "her fingers were long and thin" extremity - that part of a limb that is farthest from the torso ball - a more or less rounded anatomical body or mass; "the ball at the base of the thumb"; "he stood on the balls of his feet" metacarpus - the part of the hand between the carpus and phalanges | | 2. |  hand - a hired laborer on a farm or ranch; "the hired hand fixed the railing"; "a ranch hand" | | 3. |  hand - something written by hand; "she recognized his handwriting"; "his hand was illegible"handwriting - the activity of writing by hand; "handwriting can be slow and painful for one with arthritis" writing - letters or symbols that are written or imprinted on a surface to represent the sounds or words of a language; "he turned the paper over so the writing wouldn't show"; "the doctor's writing was illegible" | | 4. | hand - ability; "he wanted to try his hand at singing"ability, power - possession of the qualities (especially mental qualities) required to do something or get something done; "danger heightened his powers of discrimination" | | 5. | hand - a position given by its location to the side of an object; "objections were voiced on every hand"side - a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location; "they always sat on the right side of the church"; "he never left my side" | | 6. | hand - the cards held in a card game by a given player at any given time; "I didn't hold a good hand all evening"; "he kept trying to see my hand"long suit - in a hand, the suit having the most cards | | 7. | hand - one of two sides of an issue; "on the one hand..., but on the other hand..."side - an aspect of something (as contrasted with some other implied aspect); "he was on the heavy side"; "he is on the purchasing side of the business"; "it brought out his better side" | | 8. | hand - a rotating pointer on the face of a timepiece; "the big hand counts the minutes"pointer - an indicator as on a dial | | 9. | hand - a unit of length equal to 4 inches; used in measuring horses; "the horse stood 20 hands" | | 10. | hand - a member of the crew of a ship; "all hands on deck" | | 11. | hand - a card player in a game of bridge; "we need a 4th hand for bridge"bidder - someone who makes a bid at cards bridge partner - one of a pair of bridge players who are on the same side of the game card player - someone who plays (or knows how to play) card games declarer, contractor - the bridge player in contract bridge who wins the bidding and can declare which suit is to be trumps | | 12. | hand - a round of applause to signify approval; "give the little lady a great big hand" | | 13. | hand - terminal part of the forelimb in certain vertebrates (e.g. apes or kangaroos); "the kangaroo's forearms seem undeveloped but the powerful five-fingered hands are skilled at feinting and clouting"- Springfield (Mass.) Unionforepaw - front paw; analogous to the human hand | | 14. |  hand - physical assistance; "give me a hand with the chores"assist, assistance, help, aid - the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose; "he gave me an assist with the housework"; "could not walk without assistance"; "rescue party went to their aid"; "offered his help in unloading" | | Verb | 1. |  hand - place into the hands or custody of; "hand me the spoon, please"; "Turn the files over to me, please"; "He turned over the prisoner to his lawyers"give - leave with; give temporarily; "Can I give you my keys while I go in the pool?"; "Can I give you the children for the weekend?" transfer - cause to change ownership; "I transferred my stock holdings to my children" sneak, slip - pass on stealthily; "He slipped me the key when nobody was looking" deal - give (a specific card) to a player; "He dealt me the Queen of Spades" relinquish, resign, give up, release, free - part with a possession or right; "I am relinquishing my bedroom to the long-term house guest"; "resign a claim to the throne" entrust, leave - put into the care or protection of someone; "He left the decision to his deputy"; "leave your child the nurse's care" hand down - passed on, as by inheritance; "This ring was handed down through many generations" | | 2. | hand - guide or conduct or usher somewhere; "hand the elderly lady into the taxi"lead, guide, take, conduct, direct - take somebody somewhere; "We lead him to our chief"; "can you take me to the main entrance?"; "He conducted us to the palace" |
hand verb 8. help, guide, conduct, lead, aid, assist, convey >> at or on hand within reach, nearby, handy, close, available, ready, on tap ( informal) at your fingertips hand in glove in association, in partnership, in league, in collaboration, in cooperation, in cahoots ( informal) hand over fist swiftly, easily, steadily, by leaps and bounds hand something down 2. hand something or someone over 2. turn over, release, transfer, deliver, yield, surrender hands down easily, effortlessly, with ease, comfortably, without difficulty, with no trouble, standing on your head, with one hand tied behind your back, with no contest, with your eyes closed or shut >> in hand 3. in reserve, ready, put by, available for use 4. under control, in order, receiving attention lay hands on someone 6. bless, Christianity confirm, ordain, consecrate lay hands on something get hold of, get, obtain, gain, grab, acquire, seize, grasp >> adjective manual  Translations hand [hænd] n → mano f [ of clock] → aguja, manecilla (= writing); letra (= worker); obrero; ( measurement) [ of horse] → palmoto force sb's hand → forzarle la mano a algn; we have the matter in hand → tenemos el asunto entre manos; to have in one's hand [+ knife, victory] → tener en la mano; to hand [ information etc] → a mano; on the one hand ..., on the other hand ... → por una parte ... por otra (parte) ... ( US) [+ sentence, verdict]; imponerhand round vt ( BRIT) [+ information, papers]; pasar (de mano en mano): [+ chocolates etc]; ofrecer
 hand [hænd] n → main f [ of clock]; aiguille f (= handwriting); écriture f; ( at cards) → jeu m (= measurement) [ of horse] → paume f (= worker); ouvrier/ièrein hand [ situation] → en main; [ work] → en cours; to force sb's hand → forcer la main à qn; to have sth in one's hand → tenir qch à la main;
 hand [hænd] n → Hand f; ( handwriting) → Hand(schrift) f; (measurement) (of horse) → 10 cm to give or lend sb a hand → jdm helfen; (job) → anstehend; on the one hand ..., on the other hand ... → einerseits ... andererseits ...; "hands off!" → "Hände weg!"hand down hand vt (knowledge) → weitergeben; ( Law) ( judgement, sentence) → fällen (chocolates etc) → herumreichen
 hand [hænd] n → mano f [ of clock] → lancetta (= handwriting); scrittura; ( measurement) [ of horse] → dieci centimetriwe have the matter in hand → ci stiamo occupando della cosa; to force sb's hand → forzare la mano a qn; hand round vt ( BRIT) [+ information, papers]; far passare (= distribute) [+ chocolates etc] → far girare; [ hostess] → offrire
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