Definition of: "hand in hand" with explanation and origin
Definition of: hand in hand with explanation and origin? Meaning of hand in hand with examples in English idiom dictionary.
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Definition of: "hand in hand" with explanation and origin
hand in hand
hand in hand
Meaning
- close ties or connections
- in a literal sense, refers to two people holding hands, especially as a sign of love.
- roughly equivalent in meaning to “walk along with.”
- in a figurative sense, it is used to indicate that two things accompany, complement, or are concurrent with one another.
Example Sentences
- I saw a couple walking hand in hand along the beach.
- Developing critical thinking skills goes hand in hand with becoming a good writer.
- I can’t imagine going to see a movie without eating popcorn; they go hand in hand.
- The burger and bun go hand in hand.
- Good sleep and happiness always go hand in hand.
- Kelly walked hand in hand with her father on the beach.
Origin
The literal meaning is a translated description of a couple holding hands: one person’s hand is in the other person’s hand. The phrase has been used in a figurative sense since at least the 16th century, and the literal meaning is recorded as early as the 1400s. In his 1606 play, Macbeth (Act I, Scene 3), Shakespeare used the phrase in its literal sense:
“The weird sisters, hand in hand,
Posters of the sea and land,
Thus do go about, about…”
While the phrase is used in translations of much earlier texts, this appears to be a matter of literary license. For example, Fremantle et al. translate a passage from the 66th epistle of St. Jerome (347–419 CE) as “[he] walks hand in hand with virtue”; however, the original Latin could be translated as “[he] walks along with virtue.”
The Origins of hand in hand
Hand, Love, RelationshipEnglish
Related Dictionary
- English Definition & Meaning Dictionary
- English Idioms and phrases Dictionary
- Dictionnaire Français
- Dictionnaire d'expressions idiomatiques et de phrases en français
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English Idioms and phrases
An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words (although some idioms do retain their literal meanings – see the example "kick the bucket" below). By another definition, an idiom is a speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements.[3] For example, an English speaker would understand the phrase "kick the bucket" to mean "to die" – and also to actually kick a bucket. Furthermore, they would understand when each meaning is being used in context.
To evoke the desired effect in the listener, idioms require a precise replication of the phrase: not even articles can be used interchangeably (e.g. "kick a bucket" only retains the literal meaning of the phrase but not the idiomatic meaning).
Idioms should not be confused with other figures of speech such as metaphors, which evoke an image by use of implicit comparisons (e.g., "the man of steel"); similes, which evoke an image by use of explicit comparisons (e.g., "faster than a speeding bullet"); or hyperbole, which exaggerates an image beyond truthfulness (e.g., "more powerful than a locomotive"). Idioms are also not to be confused with proverbs, which are simple sayings that express a truth based on common sense or practical experience.
