handpicking

verb

present participle of handpick
as in selecting
to decide to accept (someone or something) from a group of possibilities handpicked what she considered to be the cutest kitten from the litter

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for handpicking
  1. selecting
  2. choosing
  3. picking
Verb
  • Another Facebook user explained in a video that when his mother-in-law attempted to vote for Democratic candidates in Kendall County, Texas, the machine kept selecting Republicans.
    — Ali Swenson, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Participants can add extras like the titanium extension bar, additional bit magazines and the metal pencil bit after selecting their pledge.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of selecting
Verb
  • Price optimization means choosing prices that advance business goals, such as increasing profits, attracting shoppers or clearing unsold goods.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Traditionally, choosing a nozzle size involves a compromise between detail and speed.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of choosing
Verb
  • Instead, studios seem to be picking works that come with a hungry audience attached but can still exist independent of their roots.
    — Emily Maskell, IndieWire, 22 Oct. 2026
  • This news comes the same day that reports started making the rounds of Jay-Z picking himself to handle Super Bowl halftime show duties, something U2 happens to know a thing or two about.
    — Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of picking
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

handpicked
handpicking
handpicks
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Handpicking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handpicking. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of emissary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 23

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All