handicraft
Americannoun
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manual skill.
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an art, craft, or trade in which the skilled use of one's hands is required.
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the articles made by handicraft.
a shop offering the handicraft of various South American nations.
noun
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skill or dexterity in working with the hands
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a particular skill or art performed with the hands, such as weaving, pottery, etc
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Also called: handcraft. the work produced by such a skill or art
local handicraft is on sale
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of handicraft
1225–75; Middle English hendi craft dexterous skill. See handy, craft
Explanation
Something you make with your own hands, especially an ornament or decoration, is a handicraft. You might buy some local handicrafts on your trip to Mexico, like woven bags or handmade toys, as gifts for your family. Things that are made with machines or on a large scale aren't considered handicrafts. Instead, items made by artisans like pottery, handwoven blankets, handmade jewelry, and quilts stitched by hand are all examples of handicrafts. The word comes from the Old English handcræft, "skill of the hand," and was probably modeled after handiwork.
Vocabulary lists containing handicraft
"A Suitcase of Seaweed" and "Immigrants Today"
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Content Summary 3.7: Postclassical Americas
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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.
The simulation of human handicraft — of stagehands and horn players hiding in the wings — is unnerving.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 3, 2025
Throughout the old town, kitschy souvenir shops have replaced handicraft stalls and bookstores.
From New York Times • Feb. 4, 2024
Her husband met her at the handicraft shop she owned in the capital Vientiane and as usual the couple drove home together in convoy - she was ahead, and he followed behind.
From BBC • Dec. 14, 2022
Mechanization set the stage for the Industrial Revolution, a transition away from societies focused on agriculture and handicraft production to socioeconomic systems dominated by the manufacture of goods, primarily with machines.
From Textbooks • Dec. 14, 2022
She may rely too long on Athena’s gifts— talent in handicraft and a clever mind; so cunning—history cannot show the like among the ringleted ladies of Akhaia, Mykene with her coronet, Alkmene, Tyro.
From "The Odyssey" by Homer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
