high-handed
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of high-handed
First recorded in 1625–35
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.
Triggering the administration’s nuclear response on Friday was Anthropic’s high-handed refusal to give the Defense Department carte blanche to use its technology as it sees fit.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 1, 2026
But that relationship will always be hostage to events; either a flare-up in the South China Sea, or any other act by China seen as high-handed by the Vietnamese.
From BBC • Dec. 11, 2023
In countering misinformation, FDA also risks coming off as high-handed.
From Salon • Jul. 21, 2023
The media criticised him for what was described as high-handed behaviour and an overly lavish lifestyle.
From Reuters • May 5, 2023
No matter how high-handed he sounds giving advice or how much he bothers me, I would be a fool not to listen.
From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black
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.
