hand-me-down

[ hand-mee-doun, han- ]

noun

1. an article of clothing passed on to another person after being used, outgrown, etc.:

   The younger children wore the hand-me-downs of the older ones.

2. any item not new that is or can be used again:

   Our office furniture was a collection of hand-me-downs.

adjective

1. passed along for further use by others:

   some hand-me-down clothes from my older brother.

2. borrowed or adapted from other sources; derivative:

   a street full of hand-me-down architecture.

hand-me-down

noun

1. 1. something, esp an outgrown garment, passed down from one person to another
   2. ( as modifier )

      a hand-me-down dress

2. 1. anything that has already been used by another
   2. ( as modifier )

      hand-me-down ideas

Word History and Origins

Origin of hand-me-down¹

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Yet budget is also a factor; teen drivers often end up with a hand-me-down vehicle or a used vehicle.

From Seattle Times

The warehouse has also seen fewer of the startups that used to buy a lot of the city’s hand-me-down office furniture, perhaps due to the current economic uncertainty.

From Seattle Times

He loved school and read voraciously, but he was sharply aware of the differences in the segregated school system, like the tattered, hand-me-down books and rusty school buses for Black children.

From Seattle Times

It is one of the most deprived wards in the city and she recalls a childhood of hand-me-down clothes and poverty.

From BBC

Carson will have his own hand-me-down jersey to wear Monday evening.

From Seattle Times