the upper hand
noun
: the position of having power or being in control in a particular situation
He always has to have the upper hand.
—sometimes used figurativelyThe infection was gaining the upper hand and the patient's condition was deteriorating.
Examples of the upper hand in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
With each passing month, buyers are gaining the upper hand as the inventory of unsold listings grows.
—
Aldo Svaldi, The Denver Post, 10 Nov. 2024
This clearly evidences that AI can give you the upper hand in your career, and actually propels you forward and enables faster professional development and growth than would be the case otherwise.
—Rachel Wells, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
Still, bitcoin has recently moved at least partly in line with prediction markets, rising with Trump’s fortunes and falling when Harris has gained the upper hand, said Needham’s John Todaro, a crypto and high-performance computing analyst.
—Tanaya MacHeel, CNBC, 3 Nov. 2024
As the bigger, more established between the two, 20th TV, one of the key drivers of Disney’s Fox asset acquisition, had the upper hand from the get-go.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for the upper hand 
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Aldo Svaldi, The Denver Post, 10 Nov. 2024
This clearly evidences that AI can give you the upper hand in your career, and actually propels you forward and enables faster professional development and growth than would be the case otherwise.
—Rachel Wells, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
Still, bitcoin has recently moved at least partly in line with prediction markets, rising with Trump’s fortunes and falling when Harris has gained the upper hand, said Needham’s John Todaro, a crypto and high-performance computing analyst.
—Tanaya MacHeel, CNBC, 3 Nov. 2024
As the bigger, more established between the two, 20th TV, one of the key drivers of Disney’s Fox asset acquisition, had the upper hand from the get-go.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for the upper hand
Dictionary Entries Near the upper hand
Cite this Entry
“The upper hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20upper%20hand. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.
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