on the one hand

Idioms  

1. Also, on one hand. As one point of view, from one standpoint. This phrase is often paired with on the other hand to indicate two sides of an issue. For example, On the one hand this car is expensive; on the other hand, it's available and we need it right now. [First half of 1600s]

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Example Sentences

I think on the one hand he shared a problem with his entire world of aristocrats.

From Slate • Mar. 2, 2026

“But this surface normality sits uneasily atop a much more strained underlying environment. The disconnect between relatively calm economic and financial conditions on the one hand, and heightened geopolitical tensions on the other, is striking.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026

The shooting in Minneapolis serves as a stark reminder of the stubborn gap that often persists between law and policy on the one hand and best law enforcement practices for protecting life on the other.

From Salon • Jan. 10, 2026

They are constricted on the one hand by construction that is transforming fields into concrete jungles, and on the other, by impoverished soils and competition from cheap food imports that undermine their revenue.

From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025

As far as he was concerned, there were only two sources of knowledge: reason on the one hand, and on the other sense experience, memory and testimony, all of which established matters of fact.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton