back of one's hand

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Idioms and Phrases

Rejection or contempt, as in Unimpressed with him, she gave the back of her hand to his suggestion . This phrase is usually the object of a verb such as give or show . [Second half of 1700s] Back of the hand similarly means “an insult” in the term back-handed compliment (see under left-handed compliment ) but has a quite different meaning in know like the back of one's hand (see under know like a book ).

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April 19, 2024tortuous

[tawr-choo-uhs ]

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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