handfast

handfast
handfast hand"fast`, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {handfasted}; p. pr. & vb. n. {handfasting}.] 1. To pledge; to bind. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]

2. To betroth by joining hands, in order to permit cohabitation, before the formal celebration of marriage; in some parts of Scotland it was in effect to marry provisionally, permitting cohabitation for a year, after which the marriage could be formalized or dissolved. [Obs.] [1913 Webster +PJC]

Note: Handfasting was a simple contract of agreement under which cohabitation was permitted for a year, at the end of which time the contract could be either dissolved or made permanent by a formal marriage. Such marriages, at first probably not intended to be temporary, are supposed to have originated in Scotland from a scarcity of clergy, and to have existed at times in other countries. [Century Dict. 1906.]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • handfast — [hand′fast΄] n. [< HANDFAST the vt.] Obs. 1. a firm hold, as with the hands 2. a contract, esp. of marriage or betrothal, confirmed by a handclasp adj. 1. Obs. betrothed or married 2. Rare tightfisted vt …   English World dictionary

  • handfast — hand fast , a. [G. handfest; hand hand + fest strong. See {Fast}.] Strong; steadfast.[R.] Carlyle. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • handfast — hand fast (h[a^]nd f[.a]st ), n. 1. Hold; grasp [Obs.] Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. Custody; power of confining or keeping. [Obs.] Shak. [1913 Webster] 3. A contract; specifically, an espousal. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • handfast — hand fast , a. Fast by contract; betrothed by joining hands. [Obs.] Bale. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • handfast — (v.) betroth, bind in wedlock, mid 12c., from O.E. handfæsten, from HAND (Cf. hand) (n.) + fast (see FASTEN (Cf. fasten)). Related: Handfasted; handfasting …   Etymology dictionary

  • handfast — adj (handfast, a) …   Clue 9 Svensk Ordbok

  • handfast — noun Etymology: Middle English, from Old English handfæst Date: 1611 archaic a contract or covenant especially of betrothal or marriage …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • handfast — /hand fast , fahst /, n. Archaic. a covenant or contract, esp. a betrothal, usually completed by a handclasp. [1150 1200; ME (ptp.), earlier handfest < Scand; cf. ON handfestr, ptp. of handfesta to betroth with a joining of hands, equiv. to hand… …   Universalium

  • handfast — 1. verb a) To pledge; to bind b) To betroth by joining hands, in order to allow cohabitation before the celebration of marriage; to marry provisionally. 2 …   Wiktionary

  • handfast — adj. stingy, miserly …   English contemporary dictionary

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