as in grip
the act or manner of holding
she tried to maintain her tight handhold on the umbrella as the wind picked up
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Recent Examples of handhold
Making his way blindly back around the jagged metal shard, moving along the side of the Gemini—finding the handholds and Velcro and the ship’s aft cable without the benefit of vision, all the while battling to keep his heart rate under control—was no small thing.
—
Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 11 Nov. 2025
That would cut off access to the narrow gaps between train cars where subway surfers use handholds to hoist themselves onto the roof.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 7 Oct. 2025
Instead of using natural handholds in the rock, via ferrata climbers move almost exclusively using artificial hardware drilled into the rock face, such as chains, cables, bridges, and ladders, and are attached to these fixtures via a tether and harness at all times.
—Owen Clarke, Outside, 29 Sep. 2025
The steep route is laced with a via Ferrata—the system, invented in the Dolomites, of metal handholds, footholds, and cables that climbers can clip into and follow all the way up.
—Darrell Hartman, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for handhold
Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 11 Nov. 2025
That would cut off access to the narrow gaps between train cars where subway surfers use handholds to hoist themselves onto the roof.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 7 Oct. 2025
Instead of using natural handholds in the rock, via ferrata climbers move almost exclusively using artificial hardware drilled into the rock face, such as chains, cables, bridges, and ladders, and are attached to these fixtures via a tether and harness at all times.
—Owen Clarke, Outside, 29 Sep. 2025
The steep route is laced with a via Ferrata—the system, invented in the Dolomites, of metal handholds, footholds, and cables that climbers can clip into and follow all the way up.
—Darrell Hartman, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for handhold
Recent Examples of Synonyms for handhold
Noun
-
This is a delicate and dicey subject to even bring up, since the industry right now is in the grip of multiple perceptions and anxieties about what AI portends for the future of entertainment.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
18 June 2026
-
Wider wheel positioning enhances tire grip at turn-in and cornering traction.—
Basem Wasef,
Robb Report,
17 June 2026
Noun
-
But what’s behind this chaos, and is there any way to escape its grasp?—
Christopher Elliott,
USA Today,
12 June 2026
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The trading is also set to determine whether Musk becomes the world’s first trillionaire, a title that currently just exceeds his grasp.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
12 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Handhold.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handhold. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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