handbook

American  

[hand-book] / ˈhændˌbʊk /

noun

handbooks plural

1. a book of instruction or guidance, as for an occupation; manual.

   a handbook of radio.

2. a guidebook for travelers.

   a handbook of Italy.

3. a reference book in a particular field.

   a medical handbook.

4. a scholarly book on a specific subject, often consisting of separate essays or articles.

   a handbook of lectures on criticism.

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handbook British  

/ ˈhændˌbʊk /

noun

1. a reference book listing brief facts on a subject or place or directions for maintenance or repair, as of a car

   a tourists' handbook

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• handbooks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of handbook

Translation of German Handbuch

Explanation

A handbook is a guide or list of instructions on one particular subject. A new car comes with a handbook explaining how its controls work and giving tips for problems that arise. Sometimes new parents wish their newborn infant came with a handbook. A handbook is a type of reference book, offering information about a topic or a machine. Your bird handbook might include pictures of birds in your region, and the handbook that came with your blender will tell you how to use it and also might include several smoothie recipes. In Old English, it was handboc, though in Middle English this was replaced by manual, thought at the time to be a much prettier word.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

handbook handbooks

Many of these principles are borrowed from the Premier League handbook of 2025-26.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026

Participants were assigned to different family groups and used a government civil-defense handbook as a reference.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026

You appear to be quite familiar with the Social Security Administration’s handbook, but I would also recommend reviewing and highlighting Sections 401-409 on widow’s benefits before your next meeting with the agency.

From MarketWatch ● Dec. 31, 2025

But NAR said Monday that its 2026 handbook for MLSes won’t recommend that local databases mandate membership for the agents who use it.

From Barron's ● Nov. 17, 2025

Or our junior trainers go through a section of the handbook, and then Roberta, returning from some other busi-ness, goes over the same section again.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich

That includes First Choice’s handbooks for volunteers, training materials, and agreements such as the statements of faith that employees must uphold.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 1, 2025

Mick Cronin’s postgame speech wasn’t one found in many coaching handbooks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 27, 2024

The university, she said, had handed over letters from nonprofits and copies of student handbooks that were publicly available.

From New York Times ● Mar. 5, 2024

The lawyers invoked an array of dictionaries, grammar usage guides, statutory drafting manuals, and handbooks for reading law, one of which was co-authored by the late Justice Antonin Scalia.

From Slate ● Oct. 2, 2023

There were application forms, twenty pages long, and thick, densely printed admission handbooks from Edinburgh and London whose methodical, exacting prose seemed to be a foretaste of a new kind of academic rigor.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan

Related Words

• directory
• guidebook
• manual
• text
• textbook