handicap
Americannoun
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handicaps
plural
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a race or other contest in which certain disadvantages or advantages of weight, distance, time, etc., are placed upon competitors to equalize their chances of winning.
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the disadvantage or advantage itself.
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any disadvantage that makes success more difficult.
The main handicap of our business is lack of capital.
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Sometimes Offensive. a physical or mental disability making participation in certain of the usual activities of daily living more difficult.
verb (used with object)
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handicaps,
present (3rd person singular)
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handicapped,
past participle, past
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handicapping
present participle
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to place at a disadvantage; disable or burden.
He was handicapped by his injured ankle.
- Synonyms:
- incapacitate, cripple, impede, hinder
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to subject to a disadvantageous handicap, as a competitor of recognized superiority.
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to assign handicaps to (competitors).
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Sports.
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to attempt to predict the winner of (a contest, especially a horse race), as by comparing past performances of the contestants.
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to assign odds for or against (any particular contestant) to win a contest or series of contests.
He handicapped the Yankees at 2-to-1 to take the series from the Cardinals.
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noun
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something that hampers or hinders
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a contest, esp a race, in which competitors are given advantages or disadvantages of weight, distance, time, etc, in an attempt to equalize their chances of winning
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the advantage or disadvantage prescribed
-
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golf the number of strokes by which a player's averaged score exceeds the standard scratch score for the particular course: used as the basis for handicapping in competitive play
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any physical disability or disadvantage resulting from physical, mental, or social impairment or abnormality
verb
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to be a hindrance or disadvantage to
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to assign a handicap or handicaps to
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to organize (a contest) by handicapping
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to attempt to forecast the winner of (a contest, esp a horse race)
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to assign odds for or against (a contestant)
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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handicapsimple
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handicapssimple
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have handicappedperfect
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has handicappedperfect
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am handicappingprogressive
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are handicappingprogressive
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is handicappingprogressive
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have been handicappingperfect progressive
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has been handicappingperfect progressive
Past
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handicappedsimple
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had handicappedperfect
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was handicappingprogressive
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were handicappingprogressive
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had been handicappingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of handicap
1640–50; 1870–75 handicap for def. 8; originally hand i' cap hand in cap, referring to a drawing before a horse race
Explanation
A mental or physical disadvantage, such as blindness or a missing leg, is a handicap: something that disables you in some way. Handicaps can also be imposed artificially to even out the odds in sporting events. A sporting handicap might be a faster horse carrying an extra weight, or a better golfer having a few strokes added to her score to make things more competitive. Sometimes fate imposes a handicap, as when bad weather handicaps your travel plans, or a strike handicaps the subway system. Handicap comes from the term hand in cap, an ancient British practice in which two bettors placed their money into a hat held by a neutral third party before a bet.
Vocabulary lists containing handicap
"Harrison Bergeron"
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From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
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"Gambling in Schools"
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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.
See Examples For:
They played so much golf that Haaland knocked seven strokes off his game to lower his handicap to 15.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
This would risk becoming an embarrassment as well as a handicap.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
Shah admits that Uncle Sam could contribute to volatility, as markets try to handicap these potential worries.
From Barron's ● Jun. 9, 2026
Obviousness is this film’s handicap — and the main joke.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
His skills negated the handicap; he once won on a horse carrying fifteen pounds more than his impost.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
As far as handicaps go, if you are sweeping your putts, you’re only hurting yourself and no one else…keep it enjoyable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026
It also created a ranking system, Spindex, with the hopes of making it a ratings scale similar to golf handicaps.
From Barron's ● Mar. 31, 2026
With Rory McIlroy's Masters success - and career Grand Slam - expected to inspire a surge in participation, golf bosses are warning humble hackers to avoid cheating on their handicaps.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2025
We all have some handicaps we are cursed to accept as we struggle with life.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 27, 2023
Finally a speaker came forward and spoke of Chicago’s South Side, its Negro population, their sufferings, and handicaps, linking all that, also, to the world struggle.
From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright
Byron Callan, a defense analyst at Washington, D.C.–based Capital Alpha Partners, which advises investors on government policy matters, has handicapped five possible outcomes in Iran.
From Barron's ● Mar. 6, 2026
Hoy’s wife, Kathleen, said her late husband had medical issues, used handicapped parking and though he would sometimes “yell at traffic” she had never known him to draw his weapon.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2025
Some clearly display handicapped plaques as they go to the store.
From Salon ● Apr. 1, 2025
Efoghe said the Nigerian embassy in Tripoli was "handicapped" and could not intervene because of the political situation.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2024
But I had little knowledge of Marxism, and in political discussions with my Communist friends I found myself handicapped by my ignorance of Marxist philosophy.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Three smart financial thinkers recently did some handicapping for us.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 7, 2026
The new Siri is proving to be difficult because Apple came into the AI race by handicapping itself.
From Barron's ● Dec. 5, 2025
Aston Martin locked out the back row of the grid in Belgium just a week ago, the car's high drag handicapping it on the long, high-speed sections at Spa-Francorchamps.
From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2025
You can hit another button and get minimal handicapping information that, essentially, is worthless to someone who really wants to play horse racing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2025
Weather prediction was about on a par with race-horse handicapping, and easy to explain after it happened.
From Eight Keys to Eden by Mark Clifton
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
