handstand

American  

[hand-stand] / ˈhændˌstænd /

noun

handstands plural

1. an act or instance of supporting the body in a vertical position by balancing on the palms of the hands.

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verb (used without object)

handstood, handstanding

1. to perform a handstand.

handstand British  

/ ˈhændˌstænd /

noun

1. the act or instance of supporting the body on the hands alone in an upside down position

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• handstands
  plural

Etymology

Origin of handstand

First recorded in 1895–1900; hand + stand

Explanation

When a gymnast supports her body's weight on her hands, with her legs straight up in the air, she does a handstand. It takes a great sense of balance to hold a handstand very long. You'll learn how to do a handstand in a gymnastics class, eventually even doing handstands on a balance beam or vault horse. Some yoga instructors teach handstands, and acrobatic circus performers do many varieties of the handstand. There are even dives that require a diver to start from a handstand on the diving board before plunging into the pool.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

handstand handstands handstanding

At the O2, that pain seemed a distant memory, as he careened around the U-shaped stage on roller skates, pulling off a flawless moonwalk, and even freeze-framing in a handstand.

From BBC ● Mar. 30, 2025

Sophomore Sydney Barros pumped her fist on the graduate student’s final handstand and McDonald jumped up and down as Esparza stuck her dismount.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 15, 2025

"The males will do a handstand and urinate. It's a way of competing with other males."

From National Geographic ● Sep. 21, 2023

Hop up toward a handstand, as long as you don’t mind if your floor moves, too.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 24, 2023

“You can,” Nicole said firmly as she spun me up into a handstand.

From "Courage to Soar" by Simone Biles

It broke the record for consecutive, double-dutch-style handstand-skipping with two people, which involves skipping while performing handstands as ropes are turned in opposite directions.

From Reuters ● Nov. 16, 2023

Similarly, so many of the people I saw hitting their handstands in yoga classes were people who had done this for decades.

From Salon ● Mar. 31, 2023

He read doing push-ups, practicing handstands and skating at the beach.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 28, 2022

The character he plays can’t do handstands or hula hoop or train dogs with any dexterity.

From New York Times ● Nov. 25, 2022

I was over-rotating my handstands, my catch-and-release moves were shaky, and the timing was off on my whole routine.

From "Courage to Soar" by Simone Biles

Then, kicking away the piano bench, he goes into an old-fashioned rock-'n'-roll finale and plays standing up, kneeling down, even handstanding on the keyboard with feet high in air.

From Time Magazine Archive