Word that means left handed

• 1
  left-handed
  
  

  [͵leftʹhændıd]

  1. делающий все левой рукой

  2. 1) (приспособленный) для левой руки ()

  2) сделанный левой рукой

  3) неуклюжий, неумелый

  3. 1) неискренний, лицемерный

  left-handed oath — ложная присяга; клятвопреступление

  2) сомнительный

  left-handed compliment — сомнительный комплимент; похвала, на которую можно и обидеться

  4. 1) морганатический

  left-handed marriage — морганатический брак [ тж. 2)]

  left-handed marriage — а) незаконное сожительство; б) фиктивный брак [ тж. 1)]

  left-handed wife — а) сожительница; б) фиктивная жена

  5.

  сл. извращённый,

  гомосексуальный

  6.

  предвещающий дурное, зловещий

  1) витой против часовой стрелки ()

  2) с левым ходом; вращающийся влево

  3) с левой резьбой; левовинтовой

  left-handed to no profession — ≅ мастер на все руки

  НБАРС > left-handed

• 2
  left-handed
  
  

  left-handed [ˏleftˊhændɪd]

  a

  1) де́лающий всё ле́вой руко́й;

  2) сде́ланный ле́вой руко́й

  3) неуклю́жий

  4) лицеме́рный; неи́скренний; сомни́тельный;

  5) дви́жущийся про́тив часово́й стре́лки

  Англо-русский словарь Мюллера > left-handed

• 3
  left-handed
  
  

  [ˌleft’hændɪd]

  прил.

  2)

  Syn:

  Syn:

  4)

  а) лицемерный, неискренний

  Syn:

  б) двусмысленный, сомнительный

  «I’m not trying to date you.» «Well, that’s a left-handed compliment,» — she complained. (A. Douglas) — «Я не пытаюсь назначить вам свидание». «Какой-то это сомнительный комплимент», — недовольно сказала она.

  Syn:

  5)

  Syn:

  б)

  ••

  Англо-русский современный словарь > left-handed

• 4
  left-handed
  
  

  The Americanisms. English-Russian dictionary. > left-handed

• 5
  left-handed
  
  

  left-handed propeller

  воздушный винт левого вращения

  English-Russian aviation dictionary > left-handed

• 6
  left-handed
  
  

  1. a делающий все левой рукой

  2. a для левой руки

  3. a сделанный левой рукой

  4. a неуклюжий, неумелый

  5. a неискренний, лицемерный

  6. a сомнительный

  7. a морганатический

  8. a редк. незаконный; фиктивный

  9. a амер. сл. извращённый,

  10. a уст. предвещающий дурное, зловещий

  11. a тех. витой против часовой стрелки

  12. a тех. с левым ходом; вращающийся влево

  13. a тех. с левой резьбой; левовинтовой

  Синонимический ряд:

  1. clumsy (adj.) awkward; bumbling; clumsy; gauche; gawky; inept; maladroit

  2. insincere (adj.) ambidextrous; double; double-dealing; double-faced; doublehearted; double-minded; double-tongued; hypocritical; insincere; mala fide

  English-Russian base dictionary > left-handed

• 7
  left-handed
  
  

  левша
  имя существительное:

  левша (left-hander, left-handed)

  имя прилагательное:

  Англо-русский синонимический словарь > left-handed

• 8
  left-handed
  
  

  Англо-русский технический словарь > left-handed

• 9
  left-handed
  
  

  1. с левым ходом

  2. принадлежащий левой системе координат

  English-Russian big polytechnic dictionary > left-handed

• 10
  left-handed
  
  

  1. левозакрученный

  2. принадлежащий левой системе координат

  The English-Russian dictionary general scientific > left-handed

• 11
  left-handed
  
  

  Англо-русский словарь нормативно-технической терминологии > left-handed

• 12
  left-handed
  
  

  прил.
  1) делающий все левой рукой
  2) а) предназначенный для левой руки б) сделанный левой рукой
  3) морганатический( букв. брак, когда жених подает невесте левую руку, а не правую, как было принято при морганатических браках в Германии) left-handed marriage ≈ морганатический брак Syn: morganatic
  4) неуклюжий Syn: clumsy, awkward
  5) а) лицемерный, неискренний Syn: hypocritical, insincere б) двусмысленный, сомнительный ‘I’m not trying to date you.’ ‘Well, that’s a left-handed compliment, ‘ she complained. (A. Douglas) ≈ ‘Я не пытаюсь назначить Вам свидание. ‘ ‘Какой-то это сомнительный комплимент, ‘ — недовольно сказала она. Syn: backhanded, dubious, ambiguous
  6) а) движущийся против часовой стрелки Syn: counterclockwise б) имеющий спиралевидную форму, закрученную влево
  делающий все левой рукой — * person левша (приспособленный) для левой руки (об инструменте и т. п.) сделанный левой рукой — * blow удар левой рукой неуклюжий, неумелый неискренний, лицемерный — * flattery грубая лесть — * oath ложная присяга;
  клятвопреступление сомнительный — * compliment сомнительный комплимент;
  похвала, на которую можно и обидеться морганатический — * marriage морганатический брак (редкое) незаконный;
  фиктивный — * marriage незаконное сожительство;
  фиктивный брак — * wife сожительница;
  фиктивная жена (американизм) (сленг) извращенный, особ. гомосексуальный( устаревшее) предвещающий дурное, зловещий — * strokes of fortune жестокие удары судьбы (техническое) витой против часовой стрелки (о веревке, канате) (техническое) с левым ходом;
  вращающийся влево (техническое) с левой резьбой;
  левовинтовой > * to no profession мастер на все руки

  Большой англо-русский и русско-английский словарь > left-handed

• 13
  left-handed
  
  

  1) леворукий; левша

  3) левозакрученный, левый

  5)

  матем.

  левовинтовой; левого кручения

  6)

  матем.

  принадлежащий левой системе координат; левосторонний

  •

  English-Russian scientific dictionary > left-handed

• 14
  left-handed
  
  

  [ˌleft’hændɪd]

  1) Общая лексика: двусмысленный, делающий все левой рукой, зловещий, лицемерный, морганатический, неискренний, нескладный, неуклюжий, неумелый, предвещающий дурное, сделанный левой рукой, сомнительный, фиктивный, витой против часовой стрелки , левой рукой

  13) Табуированная лексика: внебрачный , гомосексуальный

  Универсальный англо-русский словарь > left-handed

• 15
  left-handed
  
  

  [`left`hændɪd]

  делающий все левой рукой

  предназначенный для левой руки

  сделанный левой рукой

  неуклюжий

  лицемерный, неискренний

  двусмысленный, сомнительный

  движущийся против часовой стрелки

  Англо-русский большой универсальный переводческий словарь > left-handed

• 16
  left-handed
  
  

  English-russian automobile dictionary > left-handed

• 17
  left-handed
  
  

  English-Russian dictionary of mechanical engineering and automation > left-handed

• 18
  left-handed
  
  

  с левым ходом, с левой нарезкой

  Англо-русский строительный словарь > left-handed

• 19
  left-handed
  
  

  2. с левым ходом; с левой резьбой

  * * *

  Англо-русский словарь нефтегазовой промышленности > left-handed

• 20
  left handed
  
  

  Универсальный англо-русский словарь > left handed

левша, делающий все левой рукой

прилагательное ↓

Словосочетания

Возможные однокоренные слова

This goes back to the art of divination the early Romans named avspecium (coined after aves «birds» and specio «I watch» => specious). Bird-watching the Roman way so to speak.

One way auspices would use to guess good and bad omens was to watch which direction some auspicious types of birds like ravens, crows or eagles were flying by. These birds were supposed to play the role of messengers of the gods. Here is a nice study of this type of divination.

This was also practised in Ancient Greece and named οἰωνίζομαι (ornithomancy).

If birds were flying by on your right this was good omen. On the left (sinistra) that was bad omen.

The word sinistre was already a synonym of bad omen in Old French but had lost the meaning of «left» when it was introduced into Middle English.

In Italian though it still has both meanings.

Edit
As FumbleFinger rightly observes, right handed people have a natural tendency to associate negative sensations to their left-hand side. Yet the question was about the word sinister which can be traced back to Latin.

The etymological path, as far as I understand it, is as follows:

  1a.  Early Ancient Greek σκαιὀς, «left, awkward, ill-omen»,
  1b.  Latin scaevus, «left, ill-omen»,
  2.    Latin sinister, «on the left hand side, ill-omen»,
  3.    Old French senestre/*sinistre*, «sinister» occasionally «awkward».
          Left is already gauche in the 13th century — origin obscure,
  4.    Middle English ca 1400: sinister «unfavourable», «deceitful, prejudicial, dishonest».

Also consider the following points:

• A considerable number of languages have the «awkward» sense associated with the word for «left» but very few of them also have the sense of «ill omen».
• The Latin public and private life was heavily influenced by superstitions. For instance the reason why the Roman calendar evolved from lunar to solar is because of the drift accumulated by having only 29 and 31 days months. An even number of days per month was ill-omen, so that there were no 30 days months before the Julian calendar.
• Now that divination is much less prevalent, most Romance languages (Spanish, Portuguese, French and Romanian for instance) have lost the coupling between left and ill-omen (but still retain the awkward sense).

Another curiosity I’d like to mention is that the aforementioned Early Ancient Greek word for left (σκαιὀς, «skaios») and its Latin cognate (scaevus) seem to come from a Proto Indo European root for shadow (same etymology actually as «shadow» itself): (PIE *skeh₂-i-uo-, via Pt Italic *skaiwo) which is to compare to several other Indo European languages (various Celtic languages, Greek, Lithuanian, Sanskrit, Avestan) in which right-hand side also means southwards.

There is a lot of evidence suggesting that ancient Indo Europeans and Semites orientated themselves facing eastwards (like old maps do) because this is where the sun rises in the morning.

In the northern hemisphere, when one faces eastwards the sun is always on the right-hand side and one’s shadow is thus always on the left-hand side, which explains the relation in some antique words for left with similar words for shadow.

Last Updated:
6 Apr 2023
— Updated example sentences

Asked by: Jolie Altenwerth DVM

Score: 4.3/5
(30 votes)

Why are left-handers called “southpaws”? — HISTORY.

What do you call a left handed person?

Left-handedness — sometimes called «sinistrality» — means you prefer to use your left hand rather than your right hand for routine activities, such as writing. … One popular slang term for left-handers is “southpaw.» This term originated in the sport of baseball.

What is the slang word for left handed?

A mollydooker is a slang term for a left-handed person.

What is a left handed and right handed person called?

1a : using both hands with equal ease or dexterity an ambidextrous pitcher Guatelli says the master was ambidextrous, that he sketched with his right hand while he wrote with his left—simultaneously. — John P. Wiley Jr.

Do left-handers have higher IQ?

Although data suggested that right-handed people had slightly higher IQ scores compared to left-handers, the scientists noted that intelligence differences between right and left-handed people were negligible overall.

40 related questions found

«They are similar to prepare for except for the fact of right and left,» said Coughlin, referring to left-handed Vick and right-handed Young. ❋ Unknown (2011)

Mickelson, whose nickname «Lefty» refers to his left-handed golf swing, was voted into the World Golf Hall of Fame last fall. ❋ KIM MACKRAEL (2012)

The name-tag rosette was worn on either side of the costume, depending on whether the owner was right- or left-handed. ❋ Thomas Vinciguerra (2011)

Interestingly, he swings right-handed, but putts left-handed. ❋ Joe Peyronnin (2011)

Hitting Morgan leadoff is not tenable if he logs another .319 on-base percentage — including .280 against left-handed pitchers — with a 73 OPS+ while leading the league in getting caught stealing to boot. ❋ Adam Kilgore (2011)

If most people were left-handed, then keyboards would have the opposite orientation they do. sherifffruitfly says: ❋ Unknown (2010)

While they believe he is and will be fine, the Nationals are keeping an eye on the spring training progression of newly acquired left-handed starter Tom Gorzelanny, who suffered from a sinus infection and walking pneumonia for the two weeks immediately preceding spring training — «seriously bad timing,» Gorzelanny said. ❋ Unknown (2011)

But he was here Wednesday, when the past met the present, and a crowd-muting message was sent by a left-handed pitcher who started the season for the Cleveland Indians. ❋ Unknown (2009)

His teammates won’t let him forget about missing a breakaway, left-handed dunk in the second quarter, even though he came back and made his next attempt with two hands. ❋ Michael Lee (2011)

The Nationals this offseason signed Ankiel, a speedy, left-handed outfielder whose skill set resembles Bernadina’s. ❋ Unknown (2011)

Starting with this account of his humble origins, Manny Garcia, who describes himself as «a left-handed, rather contrary Mestizo-American,» has written a memoir that begins in late 1947 in the San Luis Valley of Southern Colorado and takes him to Utah and a stint as a Mormon and ultimately to Vietnam. ❋ Unknown (2010)

Twenty years after being saved from unemployment by his reputation as a solid left-handed pitcher, David N. Mullany was once again out of work. ❋ Joshua Robinson (2011)

OK, exactly what problems have you encountered as a result of being left-handed? ❋ Unknown (2010)

If Morgan falters, the Nationals could move to a platoon, perhaps with Werth taking center and Michael Morse taking right field against left-handed pitchers. ❋ Adam Kilgore (2011)

As its name implies and the above picture shows, B. sinistrum is a left-handed or sinistral species. ❋ AYDIN (2009)

The International Monetary Fund’s leader, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, may come out of a socialist party background, but the IMF’s underlying trend became apparent at a morning reception where right-leaning coffee cups made it near impossible for the left-handed to drink without making a mess. ❋ Howard Schneider (2011)

• The Phillies could face a left-handed starter five times if the series goes seven games, which suits Raul Ibanez. ❋ Unknown (2009)

I [payed] for this [gum], but i left-handed [the juice]. ❋ Analjam (2006)

«All the job requirements are fulfilled…yet due to the fact that you are [left-handed], we cannot hire you at our company at this time.»
«[Left-handed] is like being [ass handed].»
«We [left-handers] also have rights! We want equality!» ❋ C_sheila (2005)

Being [left handed] is [genetic], it’s not a [preference]. ❋ MaggieChow (2010)

[Many] of [my friends] are left handed. ❋ Redi (2007)

Allison is [left handed] because she writes with her [left hand] and does other things with her left hand as well.
[ambidexterity] ❋ Miss Wisdom (2011)

[smack you] up with [my LEFT hand].
Lets [shake] left hands. ❋ Phur Riil (2003)

[the left] hand allows for one [handed] [surfing] ❋ Other Hand (2012)

[I wish] I was [left-handed]! ❋ EllieCooper17 (2021)

Jakob- “[left or right]”
Debb- “Left”
[Left hand] would be hug now Jakob has to hug [Debb] ❋ Kodoa (2022)

Kid playing Counter-Strike alone: DID YOU SEE THAT? DID YOU SEE THAT? I [HEADSHOTTED] HIM FROM ACROSS THE MAP!
*raises left hand and high [fives] it with [right hand]*
*cries* ❋ Justfetus (2010)

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My manager said it would more effective against left-handed hitters. It seemed to me that was impossible to do without the high leg kick, which I started that day.

Juan Marichal

PRONUNCIATION OF LEFT-HANDED

GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF LEFT-HANDED

Left-Handed can act as an adjective and an adverb.

WHAT DOES LEFT-HANDED MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Definition of left-handed in the English dictionary

The first definition of left-handed in the dictionary is using the left hand with greater ease than the right. Other definition of left-handed is performed with the left hand. Left-Handed is also designed or adapted for use by the left hand.

SYNONYMS OF «LEFT-HANDED»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «left-handed» and belong to the same grammatical category.

TRANSLATION OF LEFT-HANDED

Find out the translation of left-handed to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «LEFT-HANDED»

The term «left-handed» is quite widely used and occupies the 30.561 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.

Principal search tendencies and common uses of left-handed

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «LEFT-HANDED» OVER TIME

10 QUOTES WITH «LEFT-HANDED»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word left-handed.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «LEFT-HANDED»

Discover the use of left-handed in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to left-handed and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «LEFT-HANDED»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term left-handed is used in the context of the following news items.

REFERENCE

« EDUCALINGO. Left-Handed [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/left-handed>. Apr 2023 ».

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Left-handedness is a preference to use the left hand more than the right hand for daily activities such as writing or using tools. Most people can use either hand for many things. However, people very often have a definite preference for using the left or right hand for things such as: using a pen, using a knife, using scissors, brushing teeth, blowing their nose, and so on.^[1] People who do not have a preference are called ambidextrous.

People do not just have preferences with things they do with their hands: they may, for example, be left-footed if they prefer to kick a ball with the left foot, or push harder with the left foot on a bicycle pedal.

Far more people are right handed than left handed. It is difficult to measure exactly how many, because each person has a different mixture of preferences, but about 5–10% are left-handed.

Bad things about left-handedness[change | change source]

The way people see left-handedness[change | change source]

Because left-handed people are different from most others, being left-handed has often been thought of as bad. For many years, right-handedness was seen as «normal» and left-handedness as «not normal».^[2] In Hebrew, as well as in other ancient Semitic and Mesopotamian languages, the word «left» was a symbol of power.^[3] In many European languages, «right» means “correct” (the opposite of “wrong”). In law the word “right” means authority and justice: in a democracy, everyone has certain “rights». In Russian and other Slavic languages prav is used in words meaning “correct” or “truth”. Someone who is skilled with their hands is called “dexterous”. But «left» often means “awkward” in many languages. In French “gauche” also means “clumsy”. In English, the word “sinister” (which comes from the Latin word for “left”, sinistra) means “evil”. We also say that someone has “two left feet” meaning that they are clumsy with their feet (for example they may step on their partner’s toes when dancing).

Sometimes people who are left-handed are called “Southpaws”.

Things designed for right-handed people[change | change source]

Things that are designed by right-handed people can cause problems for left-handed ones. These include guns, cameras, screws and in recent years the computer mouse and the iPhone.^[4] Many objects are sold in left-handed versions, which are often more expensive than the right-handed versions. Some items such as a computer mouse can be designed for right handed people but still be used by left handed people and in some cases may even be an improvement for right handed users. ^[5]

Scissors, especially, cause left-handed people some trouble. Most scissors are made for right-handed people. Because they are designed this way, if a person tries to cut something while holding the scissors in their left hand, they cannot see the edge they are cutting. The way the cutting action works is also designed for right-handers, and left-handed people tend to force the blades open instead of cutting cleanly.^[6] Even though some scissors say that they can be used by both left and right-handed people, these scissors only have their handles changed. They are still right-handed scissors and still cause the same issues.

Handwriting[change | change source]

It can be difficult for left-handed children to learn to write if the teacher does not give them special help. The reason for this is that most writing moves from left to right across the page. This means that left-handed writers may hold their hand over what has just been written.

In many countries, children are allowed to write with whichever hand is easier, although there are some countries where children may be made to write with the right hand. Many things can be difficult for left-handed writers. Chairs with writing boards may all be made for right-handed people. This makes left-handed people sit uncomfortably and hold their pens in an different way.

It may be curious that Arabic is written from right to left, but we have to remember that ancient writing was not done on paper. Paleo-Hebrew was right to left as a written language. Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Pashto, Urdu and Sindhi are the most widespread RTL writing systems today. Perhaps the writing tool originally used made this easier than modern pens. Some scripts (Chinese, Japanese) can be written vertically, although usually they are written horizontally.

Good things about left-handedness[change | change source]

Recent research has shown that it can be an advantage for animals and for humans to be left-handed. Being able to do things differently from most people can be a great help in many sports, such as tennis or fighting with swords.^[8] Left-handed people from Norse settlements in Ireland in the 10th Century were more favoured than right-handed people as they had the advantage of swinging with their left hand as they were on a horse or running down the stairs of a castle in attack or defence.
In tennis, left-handed players hold the racket in their left hand. Because of this, their grip of the handle is supposedly adjusted in a slightly different style from right-handed players. Some world champion tennis players that have played with their left hand include Rod Laver, Jimmy Connors, Guillermo Vilas, John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, and Rafael Nadal.

[change | change source]

• Right-handedness
• Handedness
• International Lefthanders Day

References[change | change source]