Give a hand meaning in English

Learn how to use Give a hand correctly with Gymglish.
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Definition

to give (someone) a hand: to help, to assist (someone) idiom

to give someone a hand (after a performance): to clap, to applaud (after a performance) idiom

Let's give Mr. Chang a big hand for that amazing performance! Let's give him lots of applause.

Examples

"Incidentally, there are a lot of French people in the house tonight! Give yourselves a hand!"
"That's right, give yourselves a hand, ladies and gentlemen."

Exercise 1

Polly uses the expression handed out in her email.

From the list below, choose the statements which use "to hand out" correctly.

There may be more than one correct answer!

When it started to rain, I handed out for a taxi.

The teacher handed out the test papers to her class.

That box looks heavy. Can I give you a hand out?

The Queen told her servants to hand out bread to the poor.

Polly uses the expression handed out in her email.

From the list below, choose the statements which use "to hand out" correctly.

There may be more than one correct answer!

When it started to rain, I handed out for a taxi.

This is an incorrect choice. "I handed out for a taxi" doesn't make any sense. If we wanted to describe an attempt to signal for a taxi, we might say "I hailed a taxi". If we wanted to describe movement (towards a taxi) we might say, "I headed out to find a taxi".

The teacher handed out the test papers to her class.

This sentence uses the expression correctly. To "hand something out" means to distribute it. Teachers often hand things out to their pupils in classrooms. In her email, Polly writes, "The presents will be handed out by "Santa", meaning that 'Santa" will be giving out, or distributing presents to the Delavigne staff.

That box looks heavy. Can I give you a hand out?

This is an incorrect choice. Do not confuse the phrase "to hand out" which means to distribute, with the phrase "to give a hand" (or lend a hand) which refers to helping someone. Example: Can you give me a hand with my maths homework please?

The Queen told her servants to hand out bread to the poor.

This is a correct choice. To "hand something out" means to distribute it. Polly writes in her email "The presents will be handed out by "Santa", meaning that 'Santa" will be giving out the presents to the Delavigne staff.

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