glad-hand

verb

glad-handed; glad-handing; glad-hands
Synonyms of glad-hand

transitive verb

: to extend a glad hand to
candidates glad-handing everyone they meet

intransitive verb

: to extend a glad hand
glad-handing as if he were running for mayor
glad-hander noun

Examples of glad-hand in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Even if Alex Murdaugh is a monster, how did South Carolina’s Low Country, with its good-ol’-boy networks and slipshod, glad-handing business practices, allow his monstrosity to flourish? Literary Hub, 7 May 2026 If Nelson wants to recharge his battery at home and not glad-hand with politicians in D.C., that’s his prerogative. Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 25 Feb. 2026 One was Mike Rawlings, the city’s glad-handing former mayor. Tad Friend, New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2026 Beginning tonight in Miami, Dokoupil begins a glad-handing tour of America, which means CBS Evening News will be filmed live (for the East Coast/tape-delayed for the west) in a new studio each night (for a little while, at least). Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 6 Jan. 2026 Russia has continued to ramp up attacks on Ukraine, including on civilians, even as Putin met with Trump in Alaska and glad-handed other US officials. Lauren Kent, CNN Money, 12 Sep. 2025 Carrier didn’t fit any stereotype of a glad-handing huckster with a bad loan to sell. Anjeanette Damon, ProPublica, 13 May 2025 Later, at a lavish lunch in Al-Yamamah Palace, Trump and the crown prince began an hourlong glad-handing session featuring Saudi royals, officials and military commanders. Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2025 The vice president of production (Ike Barinholtz) is more typically the kind of strategically glad-handing guy who makes it to the top. Nina Metz, Boston Herald, 27 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1903, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of glad-hand was in 1903

Browse Nearby Words

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Cite this Entry

“Glad-hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/glad-hand. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.

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