Definitions for handful
ˈhænd fʊlhand·ful

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:5.0 / 2 votes

1. handful, smatteringnoun

   a small number or amount

   "only a handful of responses were received"

2. handful, fistfulnoun

   the quantity that can be held in the hand

GCIDERate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. handfulnoun

   A person, task, or situation, which is the most that one can manage; as, my two-year-old is a handful.

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. handfulnoun

   As much as the hand will grasp or contain. - Joseph Addison

2. handfulnoun

   A hand's breadth; four inches.

   Knap the tongs together about a handful from the bottom. - Francis Bacon

3. handfulnoun

   A small quantity, usually approximately equal to five, the number of fingers on a hand.

   This handful of men were tied to very hard duty. - Fuller

4. handfulnoun

   Something which can only be managed with difficulty.

   Those twins are a real handful to look after.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Handfulnoun

   Etymology: hand and full.

   1. As much as the hand can gripe or contain.

   In the park I saw a country gentleman at the side of Rosamond’s pond, pulling a handful of oats out of his pocket, and gathering the ducks about him. Freeholder, №. 44.

   2. A palm; a hand’s breadth; four inches.

   Take one vessel of silver and another of wood, each full of water, and knap the tongs together about an handful from the bottom, and the sound will be more resounding from the vessel of silver than that of wood. Francis Bacon, Natural History.

   The peaceful scabbard where it dwelt,
   The rancour of its edge had felt;
   For of the lower end two handful
   It had devour’d, it was so manful. Hudibras, p. i.

   3. A small number or quantity.

   Being in possession of the town, they had their handful to defend themselves from firing. Walter Raleigh, Apology.

   He could not, with such a handful of men, and without cannon, propose reasonably to fight a battle. Edward Hyde.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. handful

   A handful generally refers to the amount or number of something that can fit or be held in one hand. It can also be used figuratively to describe a person, task, or situation that is difficult to manage or control.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Handfulnoun

   as much as the hand will grasp or contain

2. Handfulnoun

   a hand's breadth; four inches

3. Handfulnoun

   a small quantity

4. Etymology: [AS. handfull.]

Military Dictionary and GazetteerRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. handful

   Used figuratively, in a military sense, to denote a comparatively small number; as, “a handful of men.”

Matched Categories

1. • Containerful
   • Small Indefinite Quantity

British National Corpus

1. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'handful' in Nouns Frequency: #2326

How to pronounce handful?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say handful in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of handful in Chaldean Numerology is: 5

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of handful in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of handful in a Sentence

1. Paul Young:

   The ozone layer problem was simpler than the climate problem. You had a handful of companies who are producing a handful of chemicals for a handful of different uses, and it was relatively straightforward for them to come up with alternatives for that, but this is still a great example of how science, identifying a problem, and the world acting comparatively quickly, acknowledging that problem and coming together to address it, and that is the model that we need to address climate change.

2. Louis Untermeyer:

   Nothing but blackness aboveAnd nothing that moves but the cars...God, if you wish for our love,Fling us a handful of stars

3. Michael Fallon:

   Some 100 left during the course of the training by agreement with the Libyan authorities, the remainder have all now been returned properly to Libya, apart from five who remain in custody and a very small handful who have claimed asylum.

4. State Mike Pompeo:

   We have a handful more flights that will be heading to China to bring Americans back home from Hubei province, the exact timing of those we're still coordinating with the Chinese government, but we anticipate that they will happen in the next handful of days and we'll return those American citizens.

5. Charles R. Swindoll:

   I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it, friends make life a lot more fun.

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