hand out
- 01 A2 Elementary
to give something to everyone in a group.
to distribute items to a group of people, typically by hand. This phrasal verb is separable.
Simple“The teacher started to hand out the exam papers at exactly nine o'clock.”
In context“Volunteers spent the afternoon handing out flyers to commuters near the station to raise awareness for the local charity event.”
UsageThe verb is separable; you can say 'hand out the papers' or 'hand the papers out'.
Teacher's tipThis is very common in educational and office contexts. Remind students that 'pass out' is a synonym but can also mean to lose consciousness.
PitfallThe teacher handed out them to the students. The teacher handed them out to the students.When the object is a pronoun like 'them' or 'it', it must go between 'hand' and 'out'.
Synonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
to officially give a punishment or a decision.
to deliver a formal judgment, sentence, or piece of advice, often from a position of authority.
Simple“The judge will hand out the sentence for the crime tomorrow morning.”
In context“The tribunal is expected to hand out a significant fine to the corporation for its repeated violations of environmental safety regulations.”
UsageOften used with 'sentence', 'punishment', or 'justice' as the object.
Teacher's tipThis sense is much more formal than the 'distribute' sense and is usually found in news reports about court cases.
Synonyms
contrast with 'give out' (very similar) and 'distribute' (more formal); 'hand out' specifically implies the physical act of passing items from one person to others.
- give out
- pass out
- distribute
- allocate
- Particles
- out
- Separability
- optional
- Pattern
- hand + (object) + out