at the hands of

phrase

variants or less commonly at the hand of

: by or through the action of

suffering at the hands of a cruel dictator

Examples of at the hands of in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In 1990, Morgan again led the Red Sox to an AL East title and another trip to the ALCS, which ended in a sweep at the hands of the A’s. — Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026

And, for extra-cheap laffs, these animals routinely mugged to the camera about how awful their lives were at the hands of the humans misusing them. — New Atlas, 4 Sep. 2026

Allen was then joined by a total of 119 plaintiffs, who sued the city on allegations of kidnapping, abuse and evidence planting at the hands of the Riders. — Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2026

Though nothing about the current situation is ideal, there’s no clear way to hop off without ensuring certain doom at the hands of a large, angry cat. — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 3 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1581, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for at the hands of

• hereinabove
• above
• foxglove
• hereof
• thereof
• whereof
• dove
• glove
• love
• shove