hand down

verb

handed down; handing down; hands down

transitive verb

1

: to transmit in succession (as from father to son)

2

: to make official formulation of and express (the opinion of a court)

Examples of hand down in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Since September 2023, the office has handed down $7.8 million in penalties — a total that includes the Amazon fines, according to the Warehouse Worker Resource Center. —Suhauna Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2024

Michael Boatwright, Dedrick Williams and Trayvon Newsome were each handed down two life sentences in April for gunning down XXXTentacion during a 2018 heist in Broward County. —Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 16 June 2024

She was subsequently handed down two sentences of 15 years to life that will run concurrently. —Liam Quinn, Peoplemag, 15 June 2024

The six Republican justices handed down a decision on Friday that effectively legalizes civilian ownership of automatic weapons. —Ian Millhiser, Vox, 14 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

hand down

verb

1

: to pass down from older to younger (as from parent to child)

2

: to form and express a judicial decision

Legal Definition

hand down

transitive verb

1

: to deliver (the decision or opinion of an appellate court) to the proper office of an inferior court

2

: to make an official formulation of and announce (the decision of a court)