handbags

British

/ ˈhændˌbæɡz /

plural noun

facetious an incident in which people, esp sportsmen, fight or threaten to fight, but without real intent to inflict harm (esp in the phrases handbags at dawn, handbags at twenty paces, etc)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It since has expanded into categories including denim, footwear, handbags and swim.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 18, 2026

Social-media content about affordable ways to access luxury handbags through resale and rental platforms like Vivrelle is up sharply, analysis by Traackr shows.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 15, 2026

"The co-ordinator and her cronies were busy shopping for handbags online."

From BBC • Jun. 1, 2026

The portfolio, which was known as Markel Ventures until last year, includes Lansing, a building-products distributor; Brahmin, a maker of high-end handbags; and Eagle, a Virginia home builder.

From Barron's • May 8, 2026

I didn’t even see anyone carrying one of her signature handbags or wearing a Queen of Neat T-shirt like the one I had folded up tight and tidy in my suitcase.

From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023