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| hand·sel [ háns'l ] or han·sel [ háns'l ] |
noun (plural hand·sels) (plural han·sels) |
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1. good-luck gift: a gift given for good luck at the beginning of something, especially a new year
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2. first payment: a first payment for something, or the first money taken in by a new business
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transitive verb (past and past participle hand·selled or hand·seled, present participle hand·sel·ling or hand·sel·ing, 3rd person present singular hand·sels) (past and past participle han·selled or han·seled, present participle han·sel·ling or han·sel·ing, 3rd person present singular han·sels) |
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| Definition: |
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1. give good-luck gift to somebody: to give somebody a good-luck gift at the beginning of something, especially a new year
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2. inaugurate something: to begin or launch something with ceremony
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3. use something for first time: to use or do something for the first time
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| [14th century. Blend of Old English handselen "a handing over" + Old Norse handsal "giving the hand"] |
