as in secondhand
owned or used by someone after it had been owned or used by someone else
—used especially of clothing
He was wearing an old, hand-me-down jacket.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hand-me-down
Kinsey Gidick, USA Today, 26 Mar. 2025
The Fight for Free Tampons in Schools Lands in Court
Image
Mr. Baker got his start in breeding with a gift of hand-me-down plants from two friends, Ken Frieling, a coleus breeder who died last May, and Mr. Frieling’s partner, Tom Winn, who died in 2013.
—Margaret Roach, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2025
As children they were accustomed to wearing hand-me-downs that carried the name of a previous owner.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, WWD, 24 Mar. 2025
His plucky nickname—born from the ‘Loosey-goosey’ rhyme and shared with his father—is less of a hand-me-down and more of a savvy branding decision.
—Mike Dojc, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hand-me-down
Adjective
Patched pockets and hand-me-downs were a way of stretching the life of a garment.
—Kinsey Gidick, USA Today, 26 Mar. 2025
The Fight for Free Tampons in Schools Lands in Court
Image
Mr. Baker got his start in breeding with a gift of hand-me-down plants from two friends, Ken Frieling, a coleus breeder who died last May, and Mr. Frieling’s partner, Tom Winn, who died in 2013.
—Margaret Roach, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2025
As children they were accustomed to wearing hand-me-downs that carried the name of a previous owner.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, WWD, 24 Mar. 2025
His plucky nickname—born from the ‘Loosey-goosey’ rhyme and shared with his father—is less of a hand-me-down and more of a savvy branding decision.
—Mike Dojc, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hand-me-down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hand-me-down
Adjective
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In times of uncertainty, secondhand shopping offers consumers and retailers stability and resilience.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
16 May 2025
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Just before morning twilight, and for a little while after evening twilight, there’s no direct sunlight available to us on the ground, but high in space there’s still enough sunlight to bathe satellites, sending secondhand sunshine our way.—
Mike Decaire,
Twin Cities,
11 May 2025
Noun
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Occasionally, even Trump hints at this, vaguely touting secondary sanctions as a throwaway remark earlier this week.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
16 May 2025
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Philly sacked Jayden Daniels for the first time on Washington’s most recent drive, then forced a throwaway on third down after pressuring Daniels.—
Rohan Nadkarni,
NBC News,
27 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Probably not, but Paul has been getting the better of all the scraps between the two on WWE programming.—
Brian Mazique,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2025
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The owner of that scrap metal yard agreed in a settlement with the city in 2023 that his business would only purchase legally obtained catalytic converters and copper wire.—
Caelyn Pender,
Mercury News,
19 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hand-me-down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hand-me-down. Accessed 28 May. 2025.
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