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Synonyms for handful


Grammar : Adj
Spell : hand-foo l
Phonetic Transcription : ˈhænd fʊl



Définition of handful

Origin :
  • Old English handful; see hand (n.) + -ful. Originally the quality that can be held in a hand; also a medieval linear measurement of four inches. Meaning "a small portion or part" is from c.1400. Figurative meaning "as much as one can manage" is from 1755.
  • adj a small quantity
Example sentences :
  • He compares it to little things, to a tiny seed, to a handful of leaven, to a pearl.
  • Extract from : « De Profundis » by Oscar Wilde
  • Now, every man who was a handful or two short of his crop began to look at us doubtfully.
  • Extract from : « The Trail Book » by Mary Austin
  • Yates caught up a handful of sand, and flung it lightly against the pane.
  • Extract from : « In the Midst of Alarms » by Robert Barr
  • He stooped, thinking he had caught it, but took up only a handful of soapy foam.
  • Extract from : « The Dream » by Emile Zola
  • Then put them into the fish-kettle with cold water and a handful of salt.
  • Extract from : « Directions for Cookery, in its Various Branches » by Eliza Leslie
  • Put them into the soup, add a handful of chopped parsley, and let them boil.
  • Extract from : « Directions for Cookery, in its Various Branches » by Eliza Leslie
  • Then add by degrees the cocoa-nut; and lastly, a handful of sifted flour.
  • Extract from : « Directions for Cookery, in its Various Branches » by Eliza Leslie
  • Meantime the body had decayed and had sunk down into a handful of dust.
  • Extract from : « Buried Cities: Pompeii, Olympia, Mycenae » by Jennie Hall
  • The boy halted at the counter, producing a handful of square envelopes.
  • Extract from : « The Fortune Hunter » by Louis Joseph Vance
  • She then planted the comb in my mop of hair and tore out a handful of it.
  • Extract from : « My Double Life » by Sarah Bernhardt

Antonyms for handful

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019