handing over

verb

present participle of hand over
1
as in relinquishing
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress the police officer ordered the suspect to hand over his weapons

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in providing
to put (something) into the possession of someone for use or consumption in response to a desperate plea, we handed over all our extra blankets and pillows to the homeless shelter

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in leaving
to put (something) into the possession or safekeeping of another handed over their valuables to the desk clerk, who put them in the hotel safe

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4
as in handing
to shift possession of (something) from one person to another hand over that screwdriver, will you please?

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of handing over These changes have not been enough to convince allies that the United States is serious about handing over responsibility for conventional deterrence. — Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2026 But Scalable is not handing over unrestricted control of customer accounts to AI. — Joshua Hong, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2026 The premier, who visited Ukraine for the first time on Monday to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky, is handing over data to produce Storm Shadow missiles. — Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 24 Aug. 2026 Homeowners can’t obtain advice or accurate estimates without handing over their phone numbers and risk being pestered by overzealous salespeople. — Lew Sichelman, Miami Herald, 19 Aug. 2026 Tyler, the Creator is once again making fans do a little homework before handing over the goods. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 18 Aug. 2026 Smith stepped away from the series after the fifth season, handing over charge to Gaby Chiappe for season six and Ben Vanstone for season seven. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 17 Aug. 2026 Iger, of course, stepped aside from Disney once again earlier this year, handing over the company to Josh D’Amaro, who succeeded Chapek a the head of Disney’s experiences business. — Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 12 Aug. 2026 In some cases, Ukraine didn’t know whom Russia was handing over until after the exchange. — Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for handing over
  1. relinquishing
  2. providing
  3. leaving
  4. handing
  5. rendering
  6. giving
  7. transferring
  8. passing
Verb
  • But that would have meant Parton relinquishing half the publishing rights and therefore half the royalties.
    — Jessica Guynn, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2026
  • America is the ultimate answer to the pogrom, and to the emancipation Europe offered on the condition of relinquishing Jewish ethnic and cultural distinctiveness.
    — Rory Lancman, New York Daily News, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of relinquishing
Verb
  • The tests included transporting packages, medical supplies, food, water, and industrial equipment, providing a practical demonstration of the aircraft’s autonomous cargo capabilities.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 4 Sep. 2026
  • The cores or plugs removed from the lawn during aeration actually increase the success of overseeding by providing more direct contact between the seeds and the soil.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, The Spruce, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of providing
Verb
  • Jonah Bevin's adoptive parents did not attend a custody hearing after it was shut down, briefly leaving him as a ward of the state in the Caribbean nation.
    — Lucas Aulbach, Louisville Courier Journal, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Government debt makes up more than 200% of its gross domestic product, leaving its finances highly sensitive to rising borrowing costs.
    — Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of leaving
Verb
  • That scoreboard is now misleading, because the same AI wave letting those companies shed jobs is handing thousands of capable people the time and the reason to build something of their own.
    — Lisa Curtis, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • After missing the playoffs in 2025, Martin started off on a great note, handing a solid Mansfield program a 38-35 loss.
    — Charles Baggarly August 29, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of handing
Verb
  • But the force of the flooding could mean mud may be caked over such exits, rendering rescue plans difficult, Horney said.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The software offered to fix it, rendering a version with the left side lifted and overlaying the before and after so the subject could watch his own jawline move.
    — Christopher Elliott, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of rendering
Verb
  • After wrapping up its longest monthly losing streak on Wall Street in more than a decade, Google has started September by giving investors several reasons for optimism.
    — MacKenzie Sigalos,Drew Troast, CNBC, 3 Sep. 2026
  • The voyage involved a 57,038-DWT bulk carrier, giving the system a test under real commercial operating conditions.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of giving
Verb
  • Once in office, Escalona quickly began to roll back parts of Carollo’s legacy, including transferring the Tower Theater back to MDC.
    — Amanda Rosa, Miami Herald, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Directly transferring the original walking policy failed because the second robot had different body proportions, joint configurations, and motor characteristics.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of transferring
Verb
  • License plate recognition uses a network of cameras on public roads that take pictures of passing vehicles, extract information about them and store it in a database for law enforcement use.
    — Daniel Lempres, Sacbee.com, 2 Sep. 2026
  • After passing through Denver, expect to ascend the Rockies, glide over Utah’s salt flats, past red rock canyons, and along the Sierra Nevadas.
    — Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of passing

Browse Nearby Words

handing out
handing over
hand in hand
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Cite this Entry

“Handing over.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handing%20over. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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