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Synonyms

handwork

American  
[hand-wurk] / ˈhændˌwɜrk /

noun

  1. work done by hand, as distinguished from work done by machine.

handwork British  
/ ˈhændˌwɜːk /

noun

  1. work done by hand rather than by machine

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • hand worker noun
  • handworked adjective

Etymology

Origin of handwork

before 1000; Middle English; Old English handweorc. See hand, work; cf. handiwork

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 projects must be left behind by a loved one who is deceased or unable to complete the handwork due to illness or disability.

From Washington Post • Feb. 8, 2023

Finding a way to cut out handwork in China and Bangladesh would allow more clothing manufacturing to move back to Western consumer markets, including the United States.

From Reuters • Dec. 12, 2022

People of all ages chatted and snacked — many simultaneously keeping their fingers busy with handwork.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 1, 2021

Let us pause to recall the tricoteuse, a woman who sits and knits, coolly carrying on with her handwork as the world unravels around her.

From New York Times • May 8, 2020

One group tidied up from the meal, and the other—the one Grace dragged me into—stayed seated at the sawhorse tables and took out handwork.

From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson

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.