handicap Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun the condition of being unable to perform as a consequence of physical or mental unfitness
    impairment; disablement; disability.
    • reading disability
    • hearing impairment
  2. noun advantage given to a competitor to equalize chances of winning
  3. noun something immaterial that interferes with or delays action or progress
    balk; baulk; check; impediment; hindrance; deterrent; hinderance.
  4. verb injure permanently
    disable; incapacitate; invalid.
    • He was disabled in a car accident
  5. verb attempt to forecast the winner (especially in a horse race) and assign odds for or against a contestant
  6. verb put at a disadvantage
    hinder; hamper.
    • The brace I have to wear is hindering my movements

WordNet


Hand"i*cap noun
Etymology
From hand in cap; -- perh. in reference to an old mode of setting a bargain by taking pieces of money from a cap.
Definitions
  1. An allowance of a certain amount of time or distance in starting, granted in a race to the competitor possessing inferior advantages; or an additional weight or other hindrance imposed upon the one possessing superior advantages, in order to equalize, as much as possible, the chances of success; as, the handicap was five seconds, or ten pounds, and the like.
  2. A race, for horses or men, or any contest of agility, strength, or skill, in which there is an allowance of time, distance, weight, or other advantage, to equalize the chances of the competitors.
  3. An old game at cards. Obs. Pepys.
Hand"i*cap transitive verb
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Handicapped ; present participle & verbal noun Handicapping
Definitions
  1. To encumber with a handicap in any contest; hence, in general, to place at disadvantage; as, the candidate was heavily handicapped.

Webster 1913