handmade
Americanadjective
adjective
Etymology
Origin of handmade
Explanation
Something that's handmade wasn't made by a machine, but formed, built, or constructed by an actual person. A handmade sweater from your grandma is one she knit herself. Handmade items can look awkward and inexpertly constructed, but just as often they're more beautiful and special than their machine-made counterparts. Handmade pottery is unique, each bowl or mug looking slightly different since they're made and glazed individually, by hand. A handmade birthday card from a young relative is charming in a way its Hallmark equivalent could never be. Handmade comes from the sense of "made by hand."
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.
Someone had discarded a handmade crochet poncho in soft earth tones on the back of a chair.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
For drummer Derin Bayhan, he would only ever use Istanbul-made cymbals because they're "100 percent handmade" and each one has a unique sound.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
The trophy is touring with a sign inviting passersby and members of the public to leave their own handmade trophies “for the President to claim as his own.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
On one trip, then 6-year-old Bridget won a Laura look-alike contest in a handmade pinafore and bonnet sewn by her grandmother.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
Soojin used to be into making crafts, and I still have the handmade block-print birthday card she made me last year.
From "Amina's Voice" by Hena Khan
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.
