as in veteran
a person with long experience in a specified area
with 25 years on the job, Vinnie was the old hand everyone went to with their problems
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Recent Examples of old hand
New volunteers join old hands Like Barrett, Jesse Cupp is new to public protest.
—
Patricia Gallagher Newberry, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
At a tournament without Cristiano Ronaldo or Lamine Yamal, and with Kylian Mbappé’s availability for Real Madrid in question, the old hand of Messi was needed for a competition in dire need of a spark.
—Felipe Cardenas, New York Times, 20 June 2025
Director Len Wiseman is an old hand at franchise filmmaking, having made the first two Underworld films and Live Free or Die Hard (2007), which doesn’t stop everything from somehow feeling a tad chintzy.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 4 June 2025
But Latta is an old hand on the committee and a longtime nuclear energy booster.
—Daniel Moore, Axios, 15 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for old hand
Patricia Gallagher Newberry, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
At a tournament without Cristiano Ronaldo or Lamine Yamal, and with Kylian Mbappé’s availability for Real Madrid in question, the old hand of Messi was needed for a competition in dire need of a spark.
—Felipe Cardenas, New York Times, 20 June 2025
Director Len Wiseman is an old hand at franchise filmmaking, having made the first two Underworld films and Live Free or Die Hard (2007), which doesn’t stop everything from somehow feeling a tad chintzy.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 4 June 2025
But Latta is an old hand on the committee and a longtime nuclear energy booster.
—Daniel Moore, Axios, 15 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for old hand
Recent Examples of Synonyms for old hand
veteran
Noun
-
Anyone who doesn’t hold the same nostalgic hankering for veteran actresses holding court with one-woman shows might not be blamed for opting out.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
2 Nov. 2025
-
He was released after a few weeks in jail when filmmaker Jen Gatien pledged her $2 million Manhattan apartment where the combat veteran was living as collateral for a bond.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
2 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Old hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/old%20hand. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.
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