handful

Study(10)

/ˈhæn(d)fʊl/

noun 5

Collocations

(noun.) amount that can be held in one hand

ADJ

good

double

He scooped up a double handful of sand and let it pour through his fingers.

PREP

~ of

Only a handful of students attended the morning class because of the snow.

(noun.) small number of people/things

ADJ

small, tiny

mere

Only a mere handful of people showed up to the meeting yesterday.

good

A good handful of fans waited outside the theater to meet the actor.

PREP

~ of

Only a handful of students attended the evening class because of the bad weather.

PHRASES

just/only a handful of sth

Only a handful of students passed the difficult exam last week.

Definitions

noun

The amount that a hand will grasp or contain.

I put two or three corns in my mouth, liked it, stole a handful, went into my chamber, chewed it, and for two months after never failed taking toll of every pennyworth of oatmeal that came into the house: […]

A hand's breadth; four inches.

Knap the tongs together about a handful from the bottom.

A small number, usually approximately five.

This handful of men were tied to very hard duty.

The names of a number of the most famous North American railroads could be found in the north-east; Pennsylvania, New York Central, Baltimore & Ohio, Chesapeake & Ohio, and the Norfolk & Western, to name but a handful.

A group or number of things; a bunch.

But, aunt, she must have had some kind of education, her accent was so pure, her English so unfaulty. The other girl dropped her h's by handfuls, and made some very wild confusion in her native etymology.

Something which can only be managed with difficulty.

Those twins are a real handful to look after.

The Southern acquired them because the little Class "B4" 0-4-0 tanks were finding heavy modern rolling stock more and more of a handful, and at war's end the railway had nothing of suitable power but short wheelbase on its books to take their place on the more tortuous of the dock lines.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

noun — the quantity that can be held in the hand

fistful

noun — a small number or amount

smattering

Antonyms

Idioms & Phrases

Example Bank

Wiktionary

Knap the tongs together about a handful from the bottom.

Wiktionary

This handful of men were tied to very hard duty.

Wiktionary

There are a handful of naughty boys in my neighborhood.

Tatoeba · #18676

Only a handful of people came to the meeting.

Tatoeba · #22451

Only a handful of activists in our union are articulate.

Tatoeba · #23362

Usage Notes

i Register

In some senses, handful is marked as obsolete, informal. Watch for register when choosing this word.

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