handout

1 of 2

noun

hand·​out ˈhand-ˌau̇t 

1

sometimes disapproving : food, clothing, or money given to someone who is poor

also : money given to a person or organization by the government

2

: a folder or circular of information for free distribution

3

: a prepared statement released to the news media

hand out

2 of 2

verb

handed out; handing out; hands out

transitive verb

1

a

: to give without charge

b

: to give freely

2

: administer

handed out a severe punishment

Synonyms of handout

Verb

• distribute
• dispense
• provide
• deal (out)
• allocate
• divide
• dole out
• portion
• supply

Examples of handout in a Sentence

Noun

He sat on the sidewalk asking for a handout.

The family wasn't interested in government handouts.

The handouts had all the major points of his speech outlined on them.

Verb

no system yet in place for handing out room assignments

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Singapore had rolled out two support packages for the country in response to the Iran war, totaling about 2 billion Singapore dollars, with cash handouts, consumption vouchers for households, and tax rebates for companies. — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 24 Aug. 2026

Teachers can now open an article, document, chart or webpage, and Diffit can turn it into handouts, slides, graphic organizers, station activities, practice sets, assessments or substitute plans. — Dan Fitzpatrick, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026

Verb

Traditional Rocky Horror movie showings include a costumed cast acting out the events on screen, with bags of props handed out for audience participation during certain scenes. — Anna Ortiz, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2026

The next day, Mladic's forces were filmed handing out sweets to children, promising their safe passage. — Ivana Sekularac, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1882, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1648, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for handout

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout

Kids Definition

handout

noun

hand·​out ˈhan-ˌdau̇t 

1

: food, clothing, or money given to a beggar

2

: an information sheet for free distribution

3

: a prepared statement released to the press