ˈhan(d)-tə-ˈhand 
ˈhan-də-
: involving physical contact or close enough range for physical contact
hand-to-hand fighting
: at very close range
Examples of hand-to-hand in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 22 May 2025
The first weapons devised by man were designed for hand-to-hand combat.
—Rabbi Moishe Kievman, Sun Sentinel, 9 May 2025
Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 13 May 2025
In the weight room, David drops into a plank pose and moves the length of an agility ladder, hand to hand, down and back, pausing only when Will cracks a joke.
—Stephen J. Nesbitt, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hand-to-hand
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Adjective
Plenty of gunfights and hand-to-hand combat too, all the better to keep things as fast-moving and confounding as possible.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 22 May 2025
The first weapons devised by man were designed for hand-to-hand combat.
—Rabbi Moishe Kievman, Sun Sentinel, 9 May 2025
Adverb
As Nick begins the ceremony, the handmaids who have blades sewn into their robes surreptitiously remove them and past them, hand to hand, down the pew.
—Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 13 May 2025
In the weight room, David drops into a plank pose and moves the length of an agility ladder, hand to hand, down and back, pausing only when Will cracks a joke.
—Stephen J. Nesbitt, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hand-to-hand
Cite this Entry
“Hand-to-hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hand-to-hand. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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