Synonyms of handful

handful

noun

ˈhan(d)-ˌfu̇l 

as in few

a small number

only a handful of people signed up for the wintertime hike

Synonyms & Similar Words

• few
• couple
• scatter
• smattering
• scattering
• sprinkling
• sprinkle
• minority
• smatter
• fragment
• grain
• modicum
• shred
• molecule
• atom
• jot
• whit
• iota
• particle
• tittle
• scrap
• crumb

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• many
• thousands
• most
• loads
• multitude
• majority
• army
• crowd
• host
• flock
• horde
• mountain
• legion
• zillion
• scads
• gazillion
• plenty
• oodles
• jillion
• surplus
• kazillion
• excess
• abundance
• lot
• quantity
• slew
• pile
• wealth
• stack
• mass
• deal
• heap
• raft
• pot
• reams
• profusion
• wad
• plenitude
• peck
• gobs
• much
• slather

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of handful

Only a handful of families sailed onboard, with children under 10 numbering in the single digits. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Sep. 2026

So far, the use of phages to treat bacterial infections is limited to a handful of countries, and some see them as a potential solution to the growing problem of antibiotic resistance. — Laura Sharman, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026

New York University came in last in FIRE’s report, which listed a handful of incidents that contributed to the ranking. — Brieanna J. Frank, USA Today, 9 Sep. 2026

Just a handful will ever be in places that allow them to be seen from our planet. — Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 9 Sep. 2026