handsel
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hand·sel
(hănd′səl) also han·sel (hăn′-)Chiefly Britishn.
1. A gift to express good wishes at the beginning of a new year or enterprise.
2. The first money or barter taken in, as by a new business or on the opening day of business, especially when considered a token of good luck.
3.
a. A first payment.
b. A specimen or foretaste of what is to come.
tr.v. hand·seled, hand·sel·ing, hand·sels or hand·selled or hand·sel·ling
1. To give a handsel to.
2. To launch with a ceremonial gesture or gift.
3. To do or use for the first time.
[Middle English hanselle, from Old English handselen, a handing over (hand, hand + selen, gift) and from Old Norse handsal, legal transfer (hand, hand + sal, a giving).]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
handsel
(ˈhænsəl) orhansel
n
a gift for good luck at the beginning of a new year, new venture, etc
vb (tr) , -sels, -selling or -selled, -sels, -seling or -seled
1. to give a handsel to (a person)
2. to begin (a venture) with ceremony; inaugurate
[Old English handselen delivery into the hand; related to Old Norse handsal promise sealed with a handshake, Swedish handsöl gratuity; see hand, sell]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
hand•sel
(ˈhæn səl)
n., v. -seled, -sel•ing (esp. Brit.) -selled, -sel•ling. n.
1. a gift or token for good luck, as at the new year or when entering upon a new enterprise.
2. the initial experience of anything; foretaste.
3. a first installment of payment.
v.t. 4. to give a handsel to.
5. to inaugurate auspiciously.
6. to use, try, or experience for the first time.
[before 1050; Middle English handselne good-luck token, good-will gift, Old English handselen manumission, literally, hand-gift (see hand, sell)]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
handsel
Past participle: handselled
Gerund: handselling
| Imperative |
|---|
| handsel |
| handsel |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
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handsel
also hanselnoun
Chiefly British. Something bestowed freely:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.