How to Use handcuff in a Sentence

handcuff

1 of 2 noun
  • The felon was able to take the keys to his handcuffs from the sleeping guard.
    Charna Flam, Peoplemag, 22 Sep. 2023
  • Burkins felt the clasp of a handcuff around his right wrist.
    Dallas News, 16 Sep. 2021
  • The deputies put him in handcuffs and brought him to the victim.
    Anat Rubin, ProPublica, 4 Nov. 2023
  • Once Moreno stepped out of the car, she was placed in handcuffs.
    Pilar Arias, Fox News, 28 Feb. 2024
  • The 32-year-old mother of two was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs.
    Kevin Grasha, The Enquirer, 24 Apr. 2023
  • The deputy then puts Thompson in handcuffs, pulls his body to the side of the road and performs CPR.
    Landon Mion, Fox News, 30 July 2023
  • Taken to jail in handcuffs, the pop star took this mug shot — and weighed in at a frail 120 lbs.
    Cara Lynn Shultz, Peoplemag, 23 June 2023
  • Bean and Smith hoist Nichols into the air using the handcuff.
    Robin Stein, New York Times, 7 Feb. 2023
  • In the ensuing minutes, one of the men would end up on the ground and the other in handcuffs.
    Noah Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024
  • Police grabbed his shirt, wrestled him to the ground and placed him in handcuffs.
    Bob Sandrick, cleveland, 17 Apr. 2020
  • Photographs from the scene show the man in handcuffs being led down the beach by two deputies.
    Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2020
  • He's then placed in handcuffs and put into a squad car.
    Fox News, 21 May 2020
  • That's when the video cuts to the two people in handcuffs next to a police vehicle.
    Ryan Morik, Fox News, 10 Oct. 2023
  • Dominique was one of about 60 men in leg shackles and handcuffs bound to waist chains.
    Guillermo Contreras, San Antonio Express-News, 3 May 2023
  • Wheeldon places the man in handcuffs, needing two pairs to hold his large arms.
    Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Apr. 2023
  • After Brock was in handcuffs, the deputy put him into the back seat of his cruiser.
    Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2023
  • Looking now, Paul’s mom could see red marks where the handcuffs had rubbed Paul’s wrists raw.
    Abigail Kramer, ProPublica, 4 May 2023
  • Police brought two men out of the home in handcuffs when the Miami Herald was at the scene.
    David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 27 Jan. 2024
  • Two agents then detained Young, putting him in handcuffs.
    Nardine Saad, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2024
  • One of the pilots told air traffic controllers that the man who posed the threat had been removed from the cockpit and was in handcuffs in the back of the plane.
    TIME, 24 Oct. 2023
  • He was placed in handcuffs and brought back to the apartments, where Evans and his partner charged him with murder.
    Jay R. Jordan, Houston Chronicle, 6 Apr. 2020
  • The boy was then put in handcuffs, his father said, before being placed in the back of a police car.
    Chandelis Duster, CNN, 15 Aug. 2023
  • And despite all that, Willie Calhoun still wound up in handcuffs.
    Dallas News, 4 June 2020
  • Police prevented the door from slamming and placed the man in handcuffs.
    Bob Sandrick, cleveland, 16 Sep. 2023
  • In the front hallway, Stefanovic took the student’s hands behind his back and slapped on handcuffs.
    Maggie Prosser, Dallas News, 14 Sep. 2023
  • Photos from the event appear to show police leading Schafer away from the scene in handcuffs.
    Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 28 Feb. 2024
  • Police overtook the building, found Weyaus and placed him in handcuffs.
    Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 28 Mar. 2023
  • As he is led away in handcuffs, the 36-year-old man can be seen lying on his back through the subway car windows.
    Hurubie Meko, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024
  • The handcuffs Meade escaped in were also found at the scene of the murders, according to Winegar.
    Jonathan Limehouse, USA TODAY, 21 Mar. 2024
  • She was escorted out in handcuffs, but police declined to press charges on the burglary allegation.
    Michael Ruiz, Fox News, 25 Mar. 2024
Advertisement

handcuff

2 of 2 verb
  • The team then forced him to the floor and handcuffed him.
    Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
  • Hodges held his ground, which led the two to handcuff him.
    Jonathan Edwards, Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2022
  • Police wrestled the man to the ground and handcuffed him.
    Bob Sandrick, cleveland, 31 Aug. 2023
  • During the robbery, Leech was handcuffed and shot in the back of the head.
    Louis Casiano, Fox News, 10 Mar. 2023
  • The officers then put him on the ground and handcuff him.
    Emma Tucker, CNN, 9 Feb. 2023
  • The video shows Branch on the ground as officers handcuffed him.
    Emily Davies, Washington Post, 25 Dec. 2023
  • The officers later forced him to the ground and handcuffed him.
    Minnah Arshad, USA TODAY, 8 Sep. 2023
  • When the other guard returned, the men handcuffed him, too.
    Clay Risen, New York Times, 29 Feb. 2024
  • After the test, the officers deemed him too drunk to drive and tried to handcuff him.
    Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 22 Nov. 2022
  • Did Christian need a gun pointed at the back of his head while he was handcuffed??
    Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 3 Apr. 2024
  • Kimbrough then used a Taser on him, and Hollman was handcuffed with the help of a witness.
    Caroline Silva, ajc, 8 Sep. 2023
  • As Trump’s lawyer Joe Tacopina said would happen, Trump was not handcuffed.
    Mary Angela Bock, The Conversation, 3 Apr. 2023
  • Bombard was handcuffed, searched and placed in the back of Riggen's car before being taken to jail.
    Landon Mion, Fox News, 20 Dec. 2023
  • They were handcuffed and searched, according to the lawsuit.
    Ron Wood, Arkansas Online, 28 Apr. 2023
  • The Panthers had runners on second and third with two outs, but Goff worked his way out of the jam and handcuffed Brookwood batters the rest of the way.
    Arthur L. MacK, al, 22 Apr. 2023
  • Officers handcuffed him and tried to place him in the back of a police vehicle.
    Kelli Smith, Dallas News, 14 Sep. 2023
  • Newman took down Yearling and handcuffed him, the report says.
    Kelli Smith, Dallas News, 14 July 2023
  • Video also was shown of the couple being led into a room where their son was handcuffed to a wall.
    Gina Kaufman, Detroit Free Press, 8 Mar. 2024
  • After getting Edwards to the ground, the officer and a member of the EMT crew were able to handcuff him and strap him to a stretcher.
    Los Angeles Times, 6 Dec. 2022
  • As with the other migrants, the agents handcuffed the woman’s wrist to a fellow migrant and sent her onto the bus.
    Kate Morrissey, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2023
  • The officers handcuffed and arrested the men, called them racial slurs and warned them to stay out of Rankin County.
    Cliff Pinckard, cleveland, 4 Aug. 2023
  • Two of the officers who took the photos had arrived at the scene after McClain was choked and handcuffed.
    Audra D. S. Burch, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2023
  • Her brother’s right foot was handcuffed to the hospital bed.
    Jaden Edison, Hartford Courant, 12 Jan. 2024
  • Chauvin then carried her out of the house facedown by her arms, which were handcuffed behind her back.
    Holly Bailey, Washington Post, 14 Apr. 2023
  • In an interview afterward, Alegria told The Times that the deputies didn’t handcuff him or ask his name.
    Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 21 July 2023
  • Prude obeyed and allowed police to handcuff him, but then got upset, according to the footage.
    Jonathan Edwards, Washington Post, 7 Oct. 2022
  • In an interview afterward, Alegria told The Times that the deputies didn’t even handcuff him or ask his name.
    Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2023
  • Steinke placed Rios-Gonzalez handcuffed in the back of the Platteville police cruiser, which was parked on train tracks.
    Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 28 July 2023
  • One man wrote that while he was handcuffed in a courtroom in 2002, Mr. Grassaree beat him until a judge came off the bench to rescue him.
    Jerry Mitchell, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2023
  • Now, as McClain lay on the ground before them, handcuffed and pinned down, the paramedics were required to estimate his weight for the proper dosage.
    Audra D. S. Burch, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'handcuff.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: