🪞 A small mirror 🔍 A magnifying lens

hand glass

5.8

A small lens with a handle that makes things look bigger

noun

Archaic

: lupa de mano

The jeweler inspected the gemstone closely through his hand glass.

Examples

With a hand glass, even the smallest details of the painting became visible.
She used a hand glass to examine the tiny print on the label.
She used a hand glass to examine the details of the painting.
The hand glasses were displayed in the antique shop.
She used a hand glass to examine the tiny print on the label.
The jeweler inspected the gemstone closely through his hand glass.
With a hand glass, even the smallest details of the painting became visible.

Synonyms

magnifying glass

vshand glass

16 2.9

A small glass you hold to make things look larger

is an older or less common name for the same handheld lens

simple microscope

vshand glass

Specialized

4.2

A lens that uses light to make tiny things look bigger

is the handheld, nontechnical lens used for simple close viewing

Surface Forms

hand glass singular

hand glasses plural

Morphology

hand + glass

The noun-noun composition 'hand' + 'glass' clearly suggests a hand-held piece of glass, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a small portable glass object (e.g., a mirror or lens). However, the precise sense 'a magnifying lens with a handle' is not fully predictable—learners might assume a hand mirror or other handheld glass—so the meaning is only partially derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Hand glass comes from a small piece of glass with a handle that you hold in your hand to make things look bigger. Think of a jeweler or reader holding it close to see tiny details, so it means 'a small magnifying lens you hold'.