Definition

1. Noun:
   • A person who trains or manages an animal: A "handler" is someone responsible for the care, training, and control of an animal, often for work, sport, or exhibition.
   • A person who manages or controls something: A "handler" is an agent or person who deals with, manages, or is in charge of a particular thing, operation, or person.
   • A person who trains an athlete or team: In sports, a "handler" is a coach or trainer responsible for preparing an athlete or a team.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The dog handler prepared the police K-9 for its search duty.
  • The baggage handler carefully loaded the suitcases onto the plane.
  • The boxer's handler gave him advice between rounds.

Advanced Usage

• "To be someone's handler": To act as the primary manager or controller for a person, often used in contexts like espionage, celebrity management, or politics.
  • The intelligence officer served as a handler for the undercover agent.
• "Event handler": In computing, a routine or function that manages responses to events like mouse clicks or keystrokes. (Note: This is a specific technical compound term).
  • The programmer wrote an event handler for the button click.

Variants and Related Words

• Handle (verb): To manage, deal with, or control.
  • She can handle difficult situations calmly.
• Handling (noun): The act or manner of managing or treating something.
  • The careful handling of the artifacts prevented damage.

Synonyms

• Trainer: A person who trains people or animals.
• Manager: A person responsible for controlling or administering an organization or group.
• Agent: A person who acts on behalf of another.

Related Phrases

• Animal handler: A person who works with and controls animals. (This is a compound noun).
  • The zoo's animal handler fed the lions.
• Baggage handler: A person employed to load and unload luggage at an airport. (This is a compound noun).
  • The baggage handler placed the bags on the conveyor belt.

Related Idioms

• "In safe hands": Being cared for or managed by a competent person. While not containing the word "handler," it relates to the concept of capable management.
  • Don't worry, your project is in safe hands with her.

Noun

1. (sports) someone in charge of training an athlete or a team
2. an agent who handles something or someone
   • the senator's campaign handlers
3. one who trains or exhibits animals