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light-handed

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light-handed

Where it comes from

From Middle English lyghte handyd, from light (adjective) + honded, participle of honden (“to seize, take charge of”), from the noun hond (“hand”). See more at hand.

adjective lighter-handed · more light-handed · lightest-handed · most light-handed · lighthanded

  1. Gentle; benign and with minimal intervention. Does it reflect your position toward the other agencies that, in the words of your Deputy, this program should be as lighthanded as possible?
  2. Sparing; applying only slight pressure or minimal amounts. The shadow was now also applied to the lower lash line, but still very light-handed.
  3. Delicate and skilled; nimble and dextrous Winterbourne constantly attended for news from the sick-room, which reached him, however, but with worrying indirectness, though he once had speech, for a moment, of the poor girl's physician and once saw Mrs Miller, who, sharply alarmed, struck him as thereby more happily inspired than he could hav
  4. Light-hearted; fun and witty or easygoing. 1981-1982, Lou Sullivan, personal diary, quoted in 2019, Ellis Martin, Zach Ozma (editors), We Both Laughed In Pleasure We make several light-handed or joking references to my change.
  5. Flippant; lacking seriousness. Philip Penna, of Indiana, a veteran of many labor controversies, roundly scored the United Mine Workers for their light-handed treatment of their contracts.
  6. Not having a full complement of workers. “We will hold on to the last, while he must begin to take in soon, or the squall will come upon him too fast for a light-handed vessel.”
  7. Thieving, larcenous. Thae Hielandmen are o' the westland clans, and just as light-handed as their neighbours, an a' tales be true
  8. Fresh and light-tasting, not rich, heavy, or highly seasoned. Lively, fresh-tasting, and light-handed in style, it pairs well with any food that likes a dry white with a bit of fruit to it, from chips 'n' dips, shrimp cocktail, and pates to entree salads and poultry.
  9. obsolete Having or requiring little strength. December. Month for sheep-shearing. Rather light-handed for this work.

adverb more light-handed · most light-handed · lighthanded

  1. Carrying very little. 'Are ye come light-handed, ye son of a toom whistle?' said Sir Robert. 'Zounds! if you are'
  2. In a light-handed manner. At first merely fidgety, and managed with the greatest delicacy by the English postilion, then ill-tempered and capricious, swerving from side to side, necessitating in self-defence the use of the whip—“ But only gently and light-handed, ..."

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MLA

"light-handed." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/light-handed. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

light-handed. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/light-handed

Chicago

"light-handed." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/light-handed.

BibTeX
@misc{light_handed_2026,
  title = {light-handed},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/light-handed},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}