| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| handle |
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| SYLLABICATION: | han·dle |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  h n dl |
| VERB: | Inflected forms: han·dled, han·dling, han·dles
| | TRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To touch, lift, or hold with the hands. 2. To operate with the hands; manipulate. 3. To deal with or have responsibility for; conduct: handles matters of corporate law. 4. To cope with or dispose of: handles problems efficiently. 5a. To direct, execute, or dispose of: handle an investment. b. To manage, administer to, or represent: handle a boxer. 6. To deal or trade in the purchase or sale of: a branch office that handles grain exports. | | INTRANSITIVE VERB: | To act or function in a given way while in operation: a car that handles well in the snow. | | NOUN: | 1. A part that is designed to be held or operated with the hand. 2. An opportunity or a means for achieving a purpose. 3. Slang A person's name. 4. Games The total amount of money bet on an event or over a set period of time. | | IDIOM: | get (or have) a handle on Informal To achieve an understanding of: I was finally able to get a handle on the true nature of the problem. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English handelen, from Old English handlian. | | OTHER FORMS: | handle·less —ADJECTIVE
| | SYNONYMS: | handle, manipulate, wield, ply2 These verbs mean to use or operate with or as if with the hands. Handle applies widely and suggests competence: The lumberjack handled the ax expertly. The therapist handled every problem with sensitivity. Manipulate connotes skillful or artful management: The pilot confidently manipulated the controls in the cockpit. When manipulate refers to people or personal affairs, it often implies deviousness or fraud in gaining an end: I realized I'd been manipulated into helping them. Wield implies freedom, skill, ease, and effectiveness in handling physical or figurative implements: Ready to make kindling, she wielded a hatchet. The mayor's speechwriter wields a persuasive pen. It also connotes effectiveness in the exercise of intangibles such as authority or influence: The dictator wielded enormous power. Ply suggests industry and persistence: The hungry child was plying his knife and fork with gusto. The term also applies to the regular and diligent engagement in a task or pursuit: She plies the banker's trade with great success. See also synonyms at touch, treat.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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