hand over
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb (Transitive):
- To give something to someone, especially formally or because it is required: To transfer possession, control, or responsibility of something to another person or authority.
- To surrender a person to an authority: To deliver a person into the custody of another, such as the police.
Usage
- The verb hand over is used when the transfer is deliberate, often official, and implies a change of control. It is typically followed by the object being transferred and often uses the preposition "to" to indicate the recipient.
- It is a separable phrasal verb. The object (the thing or person being given) can often be placed between "hand" and "over" (e.g., ) or after the phrase (e.g., ).
Examples
Transferring an object or control:
- The CEO will hand over the company to his successor next month.
- Please hand over your passport to the immigration officer.
- He reluctantly handed the keys over to the new tenant.
Surrendering a person:
- The kidnappers were forced to hand over the hostages.
- The government refused to hand over the suspect to the foreign authorities.
Advanced Usage
"to hand over power/control": To formally transfer authority.
- The military regime agreed to hand over power to a civilian government.
"to hand over the reins": An idiomatic expression meaning to transfer leadership or control.
- After 30 years, she decided to hand over the reins of the family business.
Variants and Related Words
- Handover (n): The act or process of handing something over.
- The management transition was smooth after the handover.
Synonyms
- Surrender: To give up control or possession, often under pressure.
- Deliver: To bring and hand over formally.
- Transfer: To move something from one place or person to another.
- Fork over (informal): To hand over, especially money, often reluctantly.
- Turn over: To give someone or something to an authority.
Related Phrasal Verbs
- Hand in: To submit something, like homework or a resignation, to an authority figure.
- You must hand in your report by Friday.
- Hand out: To distribute something to a group of people.
- The teacher handed out the test papers.
Related Idioms
- Hand over fist: To make or lose money very rapidly.
- The new product is selling hand over fist.(Note: This idiom uses the words "hand over" but has a distinct, unrelated meaning.)
Verb
- to surrender someone or something to another
- the guard delivered the criminal to the police
- render up the prisoners
- render the town to the enemy
- fork over the money