right-handed
Americanadjective
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having the right hand or arm more serviceable than the left; using the right hand by preference.
a right-handed painter.
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adapted to or performed by the right hand.
a right-handed lever; right-handed penmanship.
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Machinery.
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rotating clockwise.
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noting a helical, or spiral, member, as a gear tooth or screw thread, that twists clockwise as it recedes from an observer.
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Building Trades. right-hand.
adverb
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in a right-handed manner or fashion.
The door opens right-handed.
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with the right hand.
She writes right-handed.
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toward the right hand or in a clockwise direction.
The strands of the rope are laid right-handed.
adjective
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using the right hand with greater skill or ease than the left
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performed with the right hand
right-handed writing
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made for use by the right hand
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worn on the right hand
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turning from left to right; clockwise
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of right-handed
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400
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.
Under normal conditions, chiral phonons exist in a mix of left- and right-handed states with varying energy levels.
From Science Daily • Apr. 19, 2026
The 24-year-old Sasaki threw a smooth 16 pitches, punching out the right-handed hitting Zavala, and inducing a pair of groundballs to shortstop from the lefty Kim.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 15, 2026
One professional, Isaac Rose-Berman, gives an example of his methods: He saw that left-handed servers in tennis, more often than not, win a point against right-handed opponents with weak backhands.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 27, 2026
Left-handed or right-handed as the fight demanded, his technical mastery was a constant throughout his career.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 17, 2025
She thought of switching to her left hand, but because she was right-handed she was afraid she might spill the sauce with her left hand, which could enrage Count Olaf again.
From "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snicket
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.
