handsbreadth
1
9.6
The width of a hand used as a rough measure of about 8 to 10 cm
- noun
- /ˈhændzˌbrɛdθ/
- Archaic
:
palmo
- The carpenter measured the wood and cut it to a length of a handsbreadth.
Examples
-
She looked at the sun, a handsbreadth above the ridge.
Fiction book (1992) -
The child was told to stand a handsbreadth away from the edge of the cliff for safety.
-
She placed the vase a handsbreadth from the edge of the table to prevent it from falling.
Synonyms
6
8.1
A unit of length equal to four inches used to measure horses
is a broader rough measure based on human palm width not just for animals
1
9.7
An old unit of length based on the width of a person's hand
is the general rough unit of similar length rather than the ancient term
1
8.9
A small measure equal to the width of a human hand
is the same measure but uses a slightly different form of the name
Surface Forms
handsbreadth singular
handsbreadths plural
Morphology
Etymology
The word handsbreadth is made from hand and breadth, literally the 'width of a hand', and it was used as a simple measure of about 3–4 inches or 8–10 cm. That's why saying something moved a handsbreadth means it moved a very small distance.