as in assistance
patient and attentive guidance encouragement, or instruction
New computer users often require a good deal of hand-holding.
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Recent Examples of hand-holding
That balance is always important, between difficulty and hand-holding.
—
Chris Plante, Vulture, 10 Feb. 2026
Ratner captures lots of hand-holding, little connection.
—Amy Nicholson, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026
OpenAI is now offering agents that are more about automating workflows—logging into applications, executing tasks, and managing tasks without much human hand-holding.
—Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 5 Feb. 2026
And in the sweetest bit of romance so far, Lady Bridgerton herself seems one step closer to acting on her attraction to Lady Danbury's brother Lord Anderson (Daniel Francis), with the two sharing a (scandalous) moment of hand-holding at the ball.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
There are no more smiles and no more hand-holding, only two sad adults.
—Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 22 Jan. 2026
There’s no spoon-feeding or hand-holding.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 15 Jan. 2026
Cross-train staff, delegate decision making early, and build a leadership layer that doesn’t need hand-holding.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
In the middle of the episode, the pop superstar — who demonstrated visible PDA with Travis, 35, throughout the podcast's two-hour duration (kissing, hand-holding and all) — discussed her obsession with numerology, particularly her fascination with the number 13.
—Skyler Caruso, People.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Chris Plante, Vulture, 10 Feb. 2026
Ratner captures lots of hand-holding, little connection.
—Amy Nicholson, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026
OpenAI is now offering agents that are more about automating workflows—logging into applications, executing tasks, and managing tasks without much human hand-holding.
—Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 5 Feb. 2026
And in the sweetest bit of romance so far, Lady Bridgerton herself seems one step closer to acting on her attraction to Lady Danbury's brother Lord Anderson (Daniel Francis), with the two sharing a (scandalous) moment of hand-holding at the ball.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
There are no more smiles and no more hand-holding, only two sad adults.
—Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 22 Jan. 2026
There’s no spoon-feeding or hand-holding.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 15 Jan. 2026
Cross-train staff, delegate decision making early, and build a leadership layer that doesn’t need hand-holding.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
In the middle of the episode, the pop superstar — who demonstrated visible PDA with Travis, 35, throughout the podcast's two-hour duration (kissing, hand-holding and all) — discussed her obsession with numerology, particularly her fascination with the number 13.
—Skyler Caruso, People.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hand-holding
Noun
-
Wang won election to the Arcadia City Council in November 2022 with assistance from Sun, who at the time, was her fiance and campaign consultant.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Many brands agreed, however, that financing must be paired with technical assistance, diagnostics, and capacity building, along with strong governance and grievance mechanisms to ensure transparency.—
Mayu Saini,
Sourcing Journal,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
There is another kind of voter fraud which has escaped the attention--whether accidentally or deliberately--of the media.—
Cal Thomas,
Arkansas Online,
10 Feb. 2026
-
In a measured but hostile tone, Rhoades called attention to a great number of complaints that had come from Coppermark.—
J.C. Hallman,
Oklahoman,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The item will come back for a final vote on March 3, and will require support from at least four of the five members to be placed on the June 2 ballot.—
Sierra Lopez,
Mercury News,
12 Feb. 2026
-
Polling shows support for photo ID requirements in elections is widespread in both political parties.—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
12 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Continue reading … UNEXPECTED ESCORT – A police boat in Florida received a friendly assist.—
,
FOXNews.com,
10 Feb. 2026
-
The junior scored 18 points on 7-of-20 shooting with 5 assists.—
Matt Byrne,
Arkansas Online,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The team will have to find Jackson more help to return to contention.—
Dan Santaromita,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Zddloinp Over-Stove Spice Rack Banish countertop clutter with the help of this handy shelf, which sits snugly on top of your stove.—
Paige Bennett,
Better Homes & Gardens,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Tax-Aide services are available at 224 locations across communities in a majority of Ohio’s counties.—
Alex Perry,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
7 Feb. 2026
-
For more details on the claims process or to download a claim form, visit the Hoosier Lottery Winners page or contact the customer service team at 1-800-955-6886.—
Chris Sims,
IndyStar,
7 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hand-holding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hand-holding. Accessed 13 Feb. 2026.
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