the upper hand

noun

: the position of having power or being in control in a particular situation

He always has to have the upper hand.

—sometimes used figuratively

The infection was gaining the upper hand and the patient's condition was deteriorating.

Examples of the upper hand in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After exchanging some slaps in the ring, Vaquer gained the upper hand and hit another Devil's Kiss on Nikki before going to the corner for a corkscrew splash to grab the pinfall win. —Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Nov. 2025

War is threatening to engulf the planet, and Carter's arrival might help the good guys gain the upper hand against an elusive faction. —Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 29 Nov. 2025

Americans would be incentivized to curb spending and would have the upper hand in bargaining for lower costs with providers. —Kim-Lien Nguyen, Boston Herald, 29 Nov. 2025

In the short term, the AI boom may well give cybercriminals the upper hand. —Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 25 Nov. 2025

Rhymes for the upper hand

• analysand
• misunderstand
• ampersand
• beforehand
• behindhand
• bottomland
• contraband
• countermand
• dixieland
• fairyland
• fatherland
• firebrand