handful

American  

[hand-fool] / ˈhænd fʊl /

noun

handfuls plural

1. the quantity or amount that the hand can hold.

   a handful of coins.

2. a small amount, number, or quantity.

   a handful of men.

3. Informal. a person or thing that is as much as one can manage or control.

   The baby's tantrums made him a handful.

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handful British  

/ ˈhændfʊl /

noun

1. the amount or number that can be held in the hand

2. a small number or quantity

3. informal a person or thing difficult to manage or control

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Spelling

See -ful.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• handfuls
  plural

Etymology

Origin of handful

before 900; Middle English, Old English. See hand, -ful

Explanation

A handful is just a little of something, or the amount you can hold in your hand. It can be a literal handful, like a handful of popcorn, or it can mean just a few, like a handful of trucks. You might find yourself eating handfuls of raspberries when you're supposed to be picking them to make jam. Another meaning of handful is "just a few," as in "There are only a handful of dogs at the dog park this morning." And a third way to use this word is to mean "incredibly difficult to handle." If your mom says, "You were a handful when you were a toddler," she means you were not easy.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

handful handfuls

On Friday, Elon Musk’s space-technology company launched its megarocket for the 13th time, after a handful of delays had pushed the mission back by about a week.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026

For much of his career, he has let his luxury empire speak for him, carefully sculpting his own public image through a handful of select interactions with the media.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026

Earlier this year, a handful of West Virginia legislators pushed to add some “bumpers” to the program to safeguard public funds.

From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026

This hidden genetic diversity may help explain how a population founded by only a handful of snakes survived intense inbreeding, adapted to Guam, and expanded so dramatically.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 26, 2026

And that’s how I became one of the fortunate handful of people with the honor of creating the foundations for America’s path into space.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson

"We call it rotting out," says Fererro, now wearing a white laboratory coat as he adds handfuls of seagrass to the Calshot tank.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

Chilled sweet peas and ribbons of summer zucchini are tossed separately with olive oil, more lemon juice and handfuls of fresh herbs.

From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026

I have friends who choke down Greek yogurt by the bucketful, who eat handfuls of grilled chicken at a time, who dead lift their own body weight.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026

This dread has been my constant companion ever since I lathered up, rinsed and watched handfuls of dirty blonde strands circle the drain three weeks ago.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 9, 2025

Grabbing handfuls of dewsoaked moss, he wiped off the worst of the dung, then yanked on his boots.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver