hand
66
4.9
- noun
- /hænd/
- The soil was then broken up by hand, and the roots were sorted.
- hired hands
Examples
-
Our lives are in each other's hands.
-
Management needs were obvious in vocational classrooms because so many hands-on activities were happening at one time.
Academic text (2012) -
I love to work with my hands, create something with my hands.
-
There is only one member of staff on hand to deal with emergencies.
Academic text (2011) -
Workers would carry in straight rods, hand bend them on a fixture, and hand weld them together.
Academic text (2012) -
Many farm hands gathered in the field to help with the harvest.
-
The crew hands worked tirelessly to repair the ship after the storm.
-
During the event, several hired hands provided assistance in serving food.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A person employed to do physical or routine jobs
69
1.0
A person who does hard physical work without special skills, often on building sites
33
1.4
A person who does physical jobs like building or fixing things
27
1.1
A person who works on a farm doing jobs like planting or harvesting
11
4.4
A person who works on a ranch caring for cattle or horses
8
3.6
A person paid to do manual work on a farm or ranch
7
3.0
A person paid to work on a farm doing hard work
5
5.7
A crew member who does physical work on a ship's deck
5
4.0
A person who does hard physical work on a farm
4
8.4
A film worker who sets up and moves camera and light equipment
3
3.2
A man who works on a farm for pay
3
4.6
A person who cares for cattle and works on a ranch, often riding a horse
2
3.0
A person who does hard work using their hands
1
6.7
A person who loads and unloads ships at a dock
1
6.9
A person who works in a mill or factory operating machines
1
7.0
A person who works on a farm doing physical work in the fields
1
8.2
A worker who fixes and looks after a part of a railroad track
1
7.5
A person who moves boxes or goods by hand instead of using machines
A person who works on the deck of a ship
Idioms
114
2.0
To do something with your hands, for example writing or making things, instead of with a machine
- Informal
3
7.9
To put someone into a bad or difficult situation because of bad luck
- Informal
2
7.2
In a humble and respectful way when you ask for something or admit a mistake
- Offensive
1
9.7
A rude phrase with a hand gesture that tells someone you will not listen
- Informal
1
7.7
Calm, skilled control of a team or company in difficult times
- Offensive
A rude way to say someone is in an embarrassing situation and unprepared
- Informal
Put someone into a difficult situation they cannot control because of bad luck
Compounds
- Offensive
39
9.9
A sexual act where one person uses a hand to touch a man's penis for pleasure
- Informal
12
7.7
A way of showing too much worry by repeatedly twisting or clasping the hands
6
1.8
A thing you hold and use with your hands, not powered by a machine, like a hammer or screwdriver
2
1.0
Striking the palms of your hands together repeatedly to show approval or admiration
- US
1
9.5
A secret criminal group that extorted people and used violence in Italian American neighborhoods
1
4.6
A form of football where another player stops someone by touching them with both hands
How Many
Surface Forms
Etymology
Hand meaning a worker comes from the idea of someone who works with their hand; sailors and farm workers who do physical jobs were called 'hands' because they use their hands to work.