time on one's hands
30
3.4
- idiom
- Informal
:
tiempo libre
- After retiring, he found himself with too much time on his hands and decided to take up painting.
- a lot of time on my hands
- much time on my hands
- too much time on my hands
Examples
-
After my workday, I had a good deal of time on my hands, and I began to write.
Academic text (2005) -
How can I get anything done with all this time on my hands?
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When you have too much time on your hands.
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You seriously have too much time on your hands.
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This guy's got way too much time on his hands.
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Sounds like the boys have a lot of time on their hands.
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I had some time on my hands.
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I had a lot of time on my hands.
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For the first time in twenty years, I find myself with free time on my hands.
Fiction book (1990) -
Rod, if you've got time on your hands, why not join our next field expedition?
Fiction book (1998)
Synonyms
117
1.0
A time when you are not working and can do things you enjoy
100
1.3
Time not spent working when you can relax or do things you enjoy
65
1.0
Time when you are not working or busy and can choose what to do
12
2.0
Free time when you are not working and can relax or do things you like
How Free
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase signals that 'time' is in one's possession—'on one's hands' conveys availability—so a learner who knows 'time', 'on', and 'hands' can partly infer that it means having spare time. However, the body-part metaphor ('hands' = available/helping capacity) is not fully literal or universally transparent and may not be predictable without prior exposure, so it is only partially interpretable.
Etymology
Time on one's hands comes from an old idea that to have something on your hands means it is with you and ready to use. So the picture of having time on your hands is like having free time with you, and that is why it means 'having nothing to do'.