Single-handed

adj, adv, verb

adj, adv, verb ·4 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Verb

1
simple past and past participle of single-hand form-of, participle, past

Adjective

1
Without help from others; unassisted. not-comparable
"It worked through from Swindon with a test train of 16 coaches and the new W.R. dynamometer car, the whole totalling 571 tons; this is one of the heaviest trains ever worked by a single-handed locomotive over the South Devon banks—in fact, it was competently restarted from a test stop on Dainton bank."
2
Using only one hand. not-comparable
3
Designed for only one hand. not-comparable

Adjective

1
without help from others wordnet
2
unsupported by other people wordnet

Adverb

1
In a single-handed manner. not-comparable
""Got those [sc. scars] with a broken bottle, arresting two toughs at once," he said, replacing his cap. "Run them in single-handed and had a set-to in the cell with them on top of it.""

Adverb

1
without assistance wordnet

Synonyms

alienated alone alone aloof apart by oneself

Example

"It took courage to sail across the Pacific single-handed."

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.