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unhand

American

[uhn-hand] / ʌnˈhænd /

verb (used with object)

to take the hand or hands from; release from a grasp; let go.

Unhand me, you wretched coward!

unhand British

/ ʌnˈhænd /

verb

archaic (tr) to release from the grasp

"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

Etymology

Origin of unhand

First recorded in 1595–1605; un- ² + hand

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.

They stage a melodrama in the lobby in which the business of "unhand that woman" and "the viper beats my mother" is used with proper gusto.

From Time Magazine Archive

“Dog, unhand our royal charger. We are the Empress Jadis.”

From "The Magician's Nephew" by C. S. Lewis

"Go away," said the girl, "unhand me, villain," said she.

From Irish Fairy Tales by Stephens, James

Forbear, sir," exclaimed the sheriff, addressing Cummiskey; "unhand Mr. Reilly.

From Willy Reilly The Works of William Carleton, Volume One by Carleton, William

And she recited the following verses: O Ghezban, unhand me and let me go freer Sure, fortune is heavy enough upon me.

From The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Volume II by Payne, John

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023