Etymology

handgift

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Today it means: A gift given directly (i.e. by hand), usually to a newly wedded couple; a wedding gift Full definition →

Middle English *handgift ← Old English handgift
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The story

  1. Old English · inherited fromhandgift“a gift given by hand; a marriage gift”
  2. Middle English · inherited from*handgift
  3. English todayhandgift

From Middle English *handgift, from Old English handgift (“a gift given by hand; a marriage gift”), equivalent to hand + gift. Compare Dutch handgift, Middle High German hantgift (“handgift”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.