Dismiss out of hand means reject immediately, without even discussing it: the committee dismissed the scheme out of hand. Out of hand here is an old way of saying at once, without delay; no actual hand is involved. A common piece of advice: I wouldn't dismiss it out of hand.
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dismiss / reject a suggestion out of hand; dismiss it out of hand; be dismissed out of hand
- The committee dismissed the reuse scheme out of hand because it came from a rival team.
- I wouldn't dismiss a night train out of hand; check the arrival time first.
- Her suggestion was dismissed out of hand before anyone asked how it would work.
What changed
First versionThe panel dismissed the suggestion out of hands.
RevisionThe panel dismissed the suggestion out of hand.
We have two hands, and phrases like time on my hands are plural, so out of hands can sound natural. But this phrase always has one hand: out of hand. Without the s, the expression is correct.
Turn down simply means refuse, possibly after long discussion. Dismiss out of hand means refuse without discussion. And get out of hand means get out of control: the party got out of hand. Same hand, different meaning.
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They refused to consider the idea at all: They ___ it out of hand.
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dismissed — You need dismissed: the idea was rejected without being considered. Discussed means talked about and contradicts the first part of the sentence.
Advise a friend not to reject a travel or job option straight away, and name what's worth checking. Use dismiss out of hand.
Don't dismiss the outdoor venue out of hand; it has a covered area for wet weather.
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