handheld

or hand-held

[ hand-held ]

adjective

1. held in the hand or hands:

   a handheld torch.

2. small enough to be used or operated while being held in the hand or hands:

   a handheld hair drier.

noun

1. something small enough to be used or operated while held in the hand or hands:

   She traded in her bulky old movie camera for a handheld.

Word History and Origins

Origin of handheld¹

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

Customers used carts and handheld baskets and ambled the aisles with their lists and often those lists expanded because there were so many products.

From Los Angeles Times

The housing authority has used handheld devices to analyze the lead composition of the hose connections and replaced fixtures where high levels were found.

From Los Angeles Times

The handheld technology is about the size of a mobile phone and is part of a pilot project being rolled out in the Southern Health and Social Care Trust.

From BBC

A rail company contractor air testing report dated 11 days after the derailment noted a ‘strong odor’ but said the handheld air testing device did not detect chemicals.

From Salon

In recent days it has delivered stunning blows to Hezbollah’s leadership and communications — by assassinating several commanders in Beirut and remotely blowing up pagers and other handheld devices used by Hezbollah.

From Los Angeles Times