in hand
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English
[edit]Prepositional phrase
[edit]- In physical possession; at one's disposal. [from 10th c.]
- Synonyms: at hand, on hand, to hand, handy; at the ready
- Held in the hand or hands. [from 14th c.]
- Pen in hand, I turned back to the letter I was writing.
- (obsolete) In the presence of a particular person. [14th–19th c.]
- Under consideration; currently being dealt with or addressed. [from 14th c.]
- 1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 6, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 119:
- 'What have they to do with the matter in hand - the murder on this train?'
- 1951 January, R. A. H. Weight, “A Railway Recorder in Essex and Hertfordshire”, in Railway Magazine, page 44:
- They form part of the vast electrification and reconstruction schemes which have been in hand for a number of years at Liverpool Street, and in suburban Essex, and include the rearrangement of tracks, of which the Ilford flyover forms part; the modern signal boxes, now needed only at key points; the electric control or sub-stations; and a large electric car shed.
- Under control. [from 18th c.]
- Antonym: out of hand
- You need to get this situation in hand, and fast.
- (snooker, billiards, pool) Of the cue ball: not on the table; able to be positioned by the current player. [from 19th c.]
- (sports, chiefly UK) Still to be played. [from 19th c.]
- 2013 September 16, The Guardian:
- At the other end […] the Sounders completed a run that had taken them from 15 points off the lead, to first place in the Supporters Shield standings with two games in hand.
Derived terms
[edit]Translations
[edit]at one's disposal
|
under control