hand 1 of 2

noun

ˈhand How to pronounce hand (audio)
Definition of handnext
1
as in side
a certain way in which something appears or may be regarded on the one hand, you would have more storage space in a larger house, but on the other, you would have more rooms to heat

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in flank
a place, space, or direction away from or beyond a central point or line tall buildings rose on either hand nothing but wide open space on either hand

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in needle
an arrow-shaped piece on a dial or scale for registering information both hands of the clock pointed to 12

Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in employee
one who works for another for wages or a salary the restaurant always hires several more hands for the busy summer season

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in handwriting
the form or style of a particular person's writing writes with a flowing, old-fashioned hand

Synonyms & Similar Words
6
as in control
usually hands plural the ability to direct the course of something the final decision is in your hands

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
7
as in possession
hands plural the fact or state of having (something) at one's disposal I'd like to get my hands on that vintage Cadillac convertible

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
8
as in assistance
an act or instance of helping the downstairs tenant gave us a hand getting the heavy dresser up the stairs

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
9
as in expert
a person with a high level of knowledge or skill in a field once she got her own place, the young woman showed that she was quite a hand at interior decoration

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
10
as in signature
a person's name written in their own handwriting often given to indicate awareness or consent the subpoena required a lawyer's hand

Synonyms & Similar Words

hand

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to provide
to put (something) into the possession of someone for use or consumption was happy to hand her grandmother's cookie recipes to the parish ladies to put in their cookbook

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to pass
to shift possession of (something) from one person to another the clerk handed her the receipt

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in to leave
to put (something) into the possession or safekeeping of another handed me her bundles while she fished for her house keys

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hand
Noun
The annual Tillman Rally has come a long way from the sweltering airport hangar where hundreds of Republican activists once crowded in with hand fans and ice-cold lemonade. — Adam Beam, AJC.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Health teams travel remote, unpaved roads and have reported shortages of protective gear, while a vast population of displaced people struggles to find reliable water sources for washing hands. — ABC News, 10 Aug. 2026
Verb
Rather than handing King a conventional script for every scene, the production routinely gave her just enough information to establish where the story needed to go. — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 11 Aug. 2026 The court also handed the same sentence to seven other former security officials, including Assad’s brother Maher and cousin Atef Najib, in the first such ruling since the fall of the regime in December 2024. — Mohamad El Chamaa, Washington Post, 11 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for hand
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hand
  1. side
  2. needle
  3. employee
  4. handwriting
  5. control
  6. possession
  7. assistance
  8. expert
Noun
  • Yet new vehicle barriers are being planned for Terrell County, part of the total $7 billion scheme for the Big Bend sector of the border that includes the national park and land either side.
    — Ashley Killough, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2026
  • One side is red and the other is black, perfect for ping-pong tournaments.
    — BestReviews, Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of side
Noun
  • Sony clearly wants to thread the needle of appropriately characterizing the new film while stoking audience nostalgia for its counterpart.
    — Vikram Murthi, IndieWire, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The doctor controls the blade or needle under high magnification.
    — Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of needle
Noun
  • Instead, the Secretary of State's office sent four employees and the Attorney General's Office sent three attorneys to court.
    — Shaun Boyd, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026
  • But that line of reasoning did not resonate with the Service Employees International Union, which represents about 6,000 Sharp employees, 81 of whom received layoff notices Tuesday.
    — Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of employee
Noun
  • According to a Meta news release, the team explored hundreds of designs, from all-caps to literal handwriting.
    — Greta Cross, USA Today, 13 Aug. 2026
  • The researchers demonstrated the concept using signals whose characteristics changed over time, including handwriting and object movement at different speeds.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 8 Aug. 2026
Definition of handwriting
Noun
  • Temperature control requires some attention, as the trailers can heat up quickly in direct sunlight and cool dramatically after dark.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Virna Jandiroba just took her down nine times and didn’t do much with that top control.
    — Brett Appley, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of control
Noun
  • Mayor Shiro Suzuki said that while some countries argue the possession of nuclear weapons helps deter potential attackers, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had demonstrated that humans can cross the line.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 Aug. 2026
  • His co-conspirator, San Francisco resident Micah-Luc Almeida, 47, was sentenced to three years in federal prison after being charged with possession with intent to distribute MDA.
    — Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 8 Aug. 2026
Definition of possession
Noun
  • The United States, once the top provider of assistance to Afghanistan, no longer even ranks in the top five of donor nations.
    — Kara Fox, CNN Money, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Police said that detectives were called for assistance after dispatchers were notified of a man down along Pine Hollow Road just after midnight on Friday.
    — Mike Darnay, CBS News, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of assistance
Noun
  • China has a tradition of paternalistic government regulations meant to pre-empt potential problems, said Yolanda Ma, an expert on AI governance.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 Aug. 2026
  • But experts agree that as long as the change is safe and age-appropriate, experimenting with personal style can be a healthy part of identity development.
    — Liz Regalia, Parents, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of expert

Phrases Containing hand

Browse Nearby Words

hamstrung
hand
handbag
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hand. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on hand

Nglish: Translation of hand for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about hand

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All