hand down

verb

handed down; handing down; hands down

transitive verb

1

: to transmit in succession (as from father to son)

2

: to make official formulation of and express (the opinion of a court)

Examples of hand down in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Octavia Spencer captioned a Thursday, May 29 Instagram photo of Collins, 46, and his husband walking hand down the aisle for an intimate, outdoor ceremony. —Angel Saunders, People.com, 31 May 2025

When the Arizona Supreme Court handed down its ruling in a pair of arson and DUI cases this month, the announcement on its website wasn’t delivered by a judge or spokesperson, but instead by two AI avatars that are virtually indistinguishable from real people. —Kevin Nious, NBC news, 29 May 2025

Jonathan Cruz-Carmona, 34, faced sentencing in federal court in New Haven where he was handed down a term of 12 months and a day in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut. —Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 22 May 2025

And Trump swatted his hand down and said no, and pointed to the TV. —Zolan Kanno-Youngs, New York Times, 21 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hand down

• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown
• crackdown
• crosstown
• downtown
• drawdown
• dropdown
• facedown
• godown
• hometown

Kids Definition

hand down

verb

1

: to pass down from older to younger (as from parent to child)

2

: to form and express a judicial decision

Legal Definition

hand down

transitive verb

1

: to deliver (the decision or opinion of an appellate court) to the proper office of an inferior court

2

: to make an official formulation of and announce (the decision of a court)