handgrip

Etymology

From Middle English hand grip, handegrip, from Old English handgripe (“handgrip”), from Proto-West Germanic *handugripi (“handgrip”), equivalent to hand + grip. Cognate with Dutch handgreep (“handgrip, grasp”), German Handgriff (“handgrip, grasp, handle, hilt”), Danish håndgreb (“handgrip”), Swedish håndgrepp (“handgrip, handle, hilt”).

noun

  1. A handle; the portion of a handle that the hand occupies.“Near-synonym: grip”
  2. A covering (often rubber or foam) on a handle, designed to allow the user a more comfortable or more secure hold on the handle.“Each cane consists of three parts: (1) the handle (which may or may not be covered by a rubber handgrip), (2) the shaft, and (3) the base (which is usually ...”
  3. A handshake; a way of gripping hands with another person.“There are also "secret" signs and handgrips, which initiates are never supposed to reveal lest they suffer a fate worse than death.”
  4. The ability to grip something with a hand.“The patient's handgrip is also tested for muscle strength.”
  5. A grasp or grip.““I heard that this youngster had the strength of thirty men in his handgrip!””