English Explanatory Dictionary

handle

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. The part of an object which is (designed to be) held in the hand when used or moved.
  2. An instrument for effecting a purpose (either literally or figuratively); a tool, or an opportunity or pretext.
  3. The gross amount of wagering within a given period of time or for a given event at one of more establishments.
  4. The tactile qualities of a fabric, e.g., softness, firmness, elasticity, fineness, resilience, and other qualities perceived by touch.
  5. A name or nickname, especially as an identifier over the radio or Internet.
  6. A title attached to one's name, such as Doctor or Colonel.
  7. A reference to an object or structure that can be stored in a variable.
  8. A traditional dimpled glass with a handle, for serving a pint of beer.
  9. A 10 fluid ounce (285 mL) glass of beer.
  10. A half-gallon (1.75-liter) bottle of alcohol.
  11. A point, an extremity of land.
  12. A topological space homeomorphic to a ball but viewed as a product of two lower-dimensional balls.
verb
  1. To touch; to feel or hold with the hand(s).
  2. To accustom to the hand; to take care of with the hands.
  3. To manage, use, or wield with the hands.
  4. To manage, control, or direct.
  5. To treat, to deal with (in a specified way).
  6. To deal with (a subject, argument, topic, or theme) in speaking, in writing, or in art.
  7. To receive and transfer; to have pass through one's hands; hence, to buy and sell.
  8. To be concerned with; to be an expert in.
  9. To put up with; to endure (and continue to function).
  10. To use the hands.
  11. To illegally touch the ball with the hand or arm; to commit handball.
  12. To behave in a particular way when handled (managed, controlled, directed).

Pronunciation

/ˈhæn.d(ə)l/ EN-AU ck1 handle.ogg /ˈheə̯n.d(ə)l/ /ˈhɛə̯n.d(ə)l/ en-us-handle.ogg

Word forms

handle handles handling handled

Etymology

From Middle English handel, handle, from Old English handle (“handle”), from Proto-West Germanic *handulā (“handle”). See verb below. Cognate with German Hantel (“dumbbell, barbell”), Danish handel (“handle”). Related to hand.

Synonyms

jug pot middy schooner sixty sixty-sixer deal feel finger manage touch treat ride

Related words

give a handle hand

Derived words

axhandle coffin handle crank the handle cross handle dead man's handle door handle drag handle filehandle file handle fly off the handle get a handle on go off the handle grab handle handleable handlebar handlebody handleless handleset handle time handling have a handle on jackhandle jughandle knife-handle ladder handle long handle love handle mophandle panhandle pseudohandle starting handle stickhandle swing handle Jesus handle behandle handleability handled the ball handle oneself handlesome handle up handle with kid gloves handle without gloves handle without mittens manhandle mishandle outhandle overhandle rehandle too hot to handle well-handled

Translations

Bulgarian: обръщение Bulgarian: прякор Chinese Mandarin: 化名 Chinese Mandarin: 昵称 Finnish: lempinimi French: indicatif French: pseudonyme German: Deckname German: Alias German: Spitzname Greek: παρανόμι Greek: ψευδώνυμο Hebrew: כינוי Hungarian: név Hungarian: becenév Hungarian: álnév Hungarian: leíró név
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
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