Handgift
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A gift given directly (i.e. by hand), usually to a newly wedded couple; a wedding gift
"Thanks for a Knife Llywelyn, eagle of fine men, fierce in battle, son of the tawny grey man, prince and foster-son of praise, refined, proud, virtuous hawk, is there any better weapon, good is the handgift, than the one you gave me, renowned gift?"
Example
More examples"Thanks for a Knife Llywelyn, eagle of fine men, fierce in battle, son of the tawny grey man, prince and foster-son of praise, refined, proud, virtuous hawk, is there any better weapon, good is the handgift, than the one you gave me, renowned gift?"
Etymology
From Middle English *handgift, from Old English handgift (“a gift given by hand; a marriage gift”), equivalent to hand + gift. Compare Dutch handgift, Middle High German hantgift (“handgift”).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.