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• glad hand
  glad hand

  noun

  a hearty welcome or enthusiastic reception, especially one that is effusive or hypocritical.
• glad-hand
  glad-hand

  verb (used with object)

  to greet warmly.

glad hand

¹ American  

noun

Informal.

1. a hearty welcome or enthusiastic reception, especially one that is effusive or hypocritical.

   Visiting dignitaries were being given the glad hand.

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glad-hand ² American  

[glad-hand] / ˈglædˌhænd /

verb (used with object)

1. to greet warmly.

2. to greet in an insincerely effusive manner.

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verb (used without object)

1. to greet others with enthusiasm, especially feigned enthusiasm.

   The candidate spent weeks glad-handing around the state.

glad hand British  

noun

1. 1. a welcoming hand

   2. a welcome

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verb

1. (tr) to welcome by or as if by offering a hand

glad hand Idioms  

1. A warm and hearty but often insincere welcome or greeting, as in Politicians are apt to give the glad hand to one and all. [Slang; late 1800s]

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Other Word Forms

• glad-hander
  noun

Etymology

Origin of glad hand¹

First recorded in 1890–95

Origin of glad-hand²

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

Soccer guided Infantino around the Zurich Hallenstadion to glad hand with delegations from FIFA’s then-207 member associations.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 11, 2026

But for all the talk of South Carolina’s penchant for dirty tricks, the state also values the glad hand.

From New York Times • Jan. 26, 2024

He doesn’t swing at big checkbooks or institutions, certainly nothing solid enough to bruise the glad hand.

From The Guardian • Jun. 30, 2015

They dither, horse trade, glad hand and posture.

From Forbes • Jul. 11, 2013

“Wouldn’t take the glad hand if I stretched it out to him and said I was sorry?” asked Dan.

From Killykinick by Waggaman, Mary T. (Mary Theresa)