in hand
Idioms-
Accessible at the present time, as in The company has very little cash in hand . [Late 1300s]
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Under one's control or authority, as in The police had the situation well in hand . [Early 1600s]
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In process, being settled, as in He was willing to give full attention to the matter in hand . [Late 1300s] Also see in one's hands .
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.
Carlos Kennerley, who lives in the same building as Veerappan, said when his 29-year-old daughter, Aisyah, came home from work, she would call him to meet her at the elevator—with a badminton racket in hand.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
"Hand in hand with that independence comes accountability and transparency," she said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
I tried it recently in my neighborhood supermarket and discovered, phone in hand, that a package of Earthbound Farm broccoli florets had a Taylor Farms connection I would otherwise never have known about.
From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026
Emmy-nominated Harington comes to the TV series with some “Harry Potter” experience already in hand.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026
I’d read enough newspapers by now to know about abolitionists, and I did not think the term deserved to go hand in hand with the word traitor.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
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.
