handheld

adjective

hand·​held ˈhan(d)-ˌheld 

-ˈheld

: held in the hand

especially : designed to be operated while being held in the hand

handheld computers

handheld

ˈhan(d)-ˌheld 

noun

Examples of handheld in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The team moved the handheld sensor in a serpentine scanning pattern and generated a two-dimensional magnetic map. — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 25 Sep. 2026

Meta said the glasses will also support more than 75 games at launch that can be played simply with hand gestures, while the device will also support Xbox Cloud Gaming with a handheld gaming pack. — Corbin Bolies, Variety, 24 Sep. 2026

And a surprise handheld device called Muse Charm to work with its new Muse personal AI agent, which is having a ChatGPT-type moment . — Matthew J. Belvedere,kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 24 Sep. 2026

The company’s tech aims to mitigate the man-hours and costs involved in maintaining and securing handheld devices. — David Moin, Footwear News, 24 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1891, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for handheld

• barrelled
• beheld
• bushveld
• chiselled
• compelled
• dispelled
• excelled
• expelled
• impelled
• marvelled
• misspelled
• modelled

Kids Definition

handheld

adjective

hand·​held -ˌheld 

: held in the hand

especially : designed to be used while being held in the hand

a handheld computer

handheld noun