1
as in to relinquish
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress
the police officer ordered the suspect to hand over his weapons
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to provide
to put (something) into the possession of someone for use or consumption
in response to a desperate plea, we handed over all our extra blankets and pillows to the homeless shelter
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to hand
to put (something) into the possession or safekeeping of another
handed over their valuables to the desk clerk, who put them in the hotel safe
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in surrender
the usually forced yielding of one's person or possessions to the control of another
though the handover of my wallet was painful, it was better than getting shot by some trigger-happy punk
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hand over
Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
Israel says Hamas is being too slow in handing over bodies of deceased hostages.
—Alexander Cornwell, USA Today, 20 Oct. 2025
Jane Arraf, NPR, 10 Oct. 2025
His arrival comes against the backdrop of a generational handover on the management side, with the arrival in 2022 of Leena Nair as global chief executive officer of the brand.
—Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hand over
Verb
The father runs his hands over his head in despair.
—Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
Israel says Hamas is being too slow in handing over bodies of deceased hostages.
—Alexander Cornwell, USA Today, 20 Oct. 2025
Noun
The handover of the living hostages is expected to begin Monday.
—Jane Arraf, NPR, 10 Oct. 2025
His arrival comes against the backdrop of a generational handover on the management side, with the arrival in 2022 of Leena Nair as global chief executive officer of the brand.
—Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 6 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hand over
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hand over
Verb
-
Sol Price had relinquished his official leadership role, and Robert’s fifteen-year-old son had recently died of cancer, devastating the family.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
20 Oct. 2025
-
In Madagascar, Rajoelina has shown no signs of relinquishing power following his removal.—
Nimi Princewill,
CNN Money,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
L3Harris revealed that the communications suite will provide interoperability with the United States, NATO and coalition partners, creating a networked battlespace with fifth-generation aircraft and beyond.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Oct. 2025
-
Emirates confirmed to Reuters that its plane was leased from and operated by ACT Airlines, a Turkish carrier that provides extra cargo capacity to major airlines.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
And while handing Ole Miss its first loss of the year was reason to celebrate, things got pretty somber rather quickly for the Bulldogs after learning the injury status of one of their top playmakers.—
Michael Gallagher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Oct. 2025
-
There are Reddit groups dedicated to the hobby of collecting new and vintage matchbooks, and even a website called Matchbooktraveler that catalogs restaurants in the United States that hand them out.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
17 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The Harvard Lampoon’s ad offered two suggested surrender dates, April Fool’s Day and April 14.—
Rosemary Feitelberg,
Footwear News,
20 Oct. 2025
-
Fox19 was outside the Cincinnati Police Department’s District One headquarters on Sunday when Shaquille Ferguson and his attorney Clyde Bennett arrived for his surrender.—
Tre Mathews,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Jenner went with a cohesive look, pairing the light brown boots with a Fendi suit rendered in a rich chocolate hue.—
Kelsey Stewart,
Footwear News,
23 Oct. 2025
-
That said, while each companion’s abilities bring something to the table, they get downed by enemies a lot, which renders their abilities unusable until they can be revived.—
Jason Fanelli,
Rolling Stone,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Tim Curry of Rocky Horror Picture Show fame memorably gave the dancing clown its first breath in a 1990 miniseries co-written and directed by Tommy Lee Wallace.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
23 Oct. 2025
-
When Salah was left out away at Galatasaray last month, Slot could sell it as keeping him fresh given the trip to Turkey fell between tricky Premier League games against Crystal Palace and Chelsea.—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Markus Breitenecker, chief operating officer, is leaving his post with immediate effect.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Abe was Japan’s longest-serving prime minister and was assassinated in 2022 at a campaign rally, two years after leaving office.—
Efrat Lachter,
FOXNews.com,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
This year, the council of 16 judges, comprising photographers, videographers, and social media professionals, reviewed nearly 10,000 submissions from across 108 countries.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
23 Oct. 2025
-
Among the 65 submissions was one that detailed the discovery of a 1930s-era oil can from Fresno that was supposedly uncovered at SDSU during an on-campus building project.—
Kirk Kenney,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hand over.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hand%20over. Accessed 25 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share