- the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb;
"he had the hands of a surgeon"
"he extended his mitt"
- a hired laborer on a farm or ranch;
"the hired hand fixed the railing"
"a ranch hand"
- something written by hand;
"she recognized his handwriting"
"his hand was illegible"
- ability;
"he wanted to try his hand at singing"
- a position given by its location to the side of an object;
"objections were voiced on every hand"
- the cards held in a card game by a given player at any given time;
"I didn't hold a good hand all evening"
"he kept trying to see my hand"
- one of two sides of an issue;
"on the one hand..., but on the other hand..."
- a rotating pointer on the face of a timepiece;
"the big hand counts the minutes"
- a unit of length equal to 4 inches; used in measuring horses;
"the horse stood 20 hands"
- a member of the crew of a ship;
"all hands on deck"
- a card player in a game of bridge;
"we need a 4th hand for bridge"
- a round of applause to signify approval;
"give the little lady a great big hand"
- terminal part of the forelimb in certain vertebrates (e.g. apes or kangaroos);
"the kangaroo's forearms seem undeveloped but the powerful five-fingered hands are skilled at feinting and clouting"
- physical assistance;
"give me a hand with the chores"
