Definitions for handful
ˈhænd fʊlhand·ful

Princeton's WordNet(5.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. handful, smattering(noun)

   a small number or amount

   "only a handful of responses were received"

2. handful, fistful(noun)

   the quantity that can be held in the hand

GCIDE(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. handful(n.)

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

   Etymology: [AS. handfull.]

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. handful(Noun)

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

2. handful(Noun)

   A hand's breadth; four inches.

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

3. handful(Noun)

   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. handful(Noun)

   Something which can only be managed with difficulty.

   Those twins are a real handful to look after.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Handful(noun)

   as much as the hand will grasp or contain

   Etymology: [AS. handfull.]

2. Handful(noun)

   a hand's breadth; four inches

   Etymology: [AS. handfull.]

3. Handful(noun)

   a small quantity

   Etymology: [AS. handfull.]

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. handful

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

British National Corpus

1. Nouns Frequency

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

How to pronounce handful?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

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. Andy Slavitt:

   I would caution you not to be overly swayed by any one or a handful of companies and whether they are making money or not.

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. Paul Ryan:

   There are a handful of unresolved issues and I'm just not — I don't want to make news, but we'll see if they can get this done by May 17 and get us the paper to Congress, which then we could have this vote in December, if they can't, then we won't.

4. Home Minister Rajnath Singh:

   It is true the number of Indians in the group or involved in its activities is only a handful, but I want to make clear we are taking this seriously.

5. Peter Salama:

   Even though it seems like a large sum, we know most countries can actually afford to do this based on their domestic resources. It is only a handful of countries that requires international aid to scale up their primary health care.

Images & Illustrations of handful

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