Meaning of handicap | Babel Free

Definitions

1. Something that prevents, hampers, or hinders.
   countable, uncountable
2. An allowance of a certain amount of time or distance in starting, granted in a race (or other contest of skill) to the competitor possessing disadvantages; or an additional weight or other hindrance imposed upon the one possessing advantages, in order to equalize, as much as possible, the chances of success.
   countable, uncountable
3. The disadvantage itself, in particular physical or mental disadvantages of people.
   countable, uncountable
4. A race or similar contest in which there is an allowance of time, distance, weight, or other advantage, to equalize the chances of the competitors.
   countable, uncountable
5. An old card game, similar to lanterloo.
   obsolete, uncountable
6. Synonym of hand-in-cap (“old English trading game”).
   obsolete, uncountable

Equivalents

Examples

“Age is often a handicap.”

“Captain Edward Carlisle[…]felt a curious sensation of helplessness seize upon him as he met her steady gaze,[…]; he could not tell what this prisoner might do. He cursed the fate which had assigned such a duty, cursed especially that fate which forced a gallant soldier to meet so superb a woman as this under handicap so hard.”

“The older boy won, even though his opponent had been granted a handicap of five meters.”

“A handicap in chess often involves removal of the queen's rook.”

“Eventually the elephant and camel were depatched by themselves with two laps start of the bicyclist and horse, the motor car being scratch. It was a sensational race owing to the conduct of the field, but on the handicap the elephant won, bicycle second, motor car third.”

“Here some of us fell to handicap, a sport that I never knew before, which was very good.”

CEFR level