"to hand" vs "in hand" vs "at hand"

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Hi,

I’ve gleaned from dictionaries that these expressions can all mean “in one’s possession”.
Can I say these phrases:

  1. To apply for a job you must have your Social Security Number in hand.
  2. To apply for a job you must have your Social Security Number to hand.
  3. To apply for a job you must have your Social Security Number at hand.

Is there any tangible difference between these three sentences?

Thanks!

2

IMHO:

(1) in hand. = literally in your hand this minute.

(2) ?

(3) at hand. = it does NOT have to be in your hand this minute, but it should be somewhere you can easily and quickly get it if requested to do so.

3

For me:

“in hand” doesn’t really work in this sentence.

“to hand” and “at hand” both mean “readily available” (i.e. ready to give to the employer when asked, ready to write down on the application form, etc.). To me, the use of “to hand” and “at hand” make applying for a job sound like a quicker and more informal process than it often is.

4

Thanks a lot!

In passing, where would you most likely use “in hand”? When you’re holding something in your hands, as in:

  1. He came in with hat in hand.
  2. He had a knife in hand.
    ?
5

“in hand” has several non-literal meanings. Its literal meaning seems to be largely restricted to certain specific phrases and contexts. “with in hand” is one, at least for certain nouns, so your sentence #1 sounds OK to me. You can also make sentences like “He stood there, hat in hand.” A similar Googled sentence that is also fine: “The painter bit his lip and walked over, cup in hand, to the picture”.

#2 doesn’t seem very likely; you would normally say “in his hand”.

6

Incidentally, if I want to ask a group of students to do the calculation in a math problem by using an appropriate formula from a list of formulae, can I say “With all those formulae at hand, please use the common sense to choose the right one because in the next minute, I’m going to ask you why you’re choosing that but not the others. Look, I’m not asking you to be a genius, I’m only begging you to use your common sense to pick the right one.”

7

Yes, this use of “at hand” is OK.

“please use the common sense” should be “please use common sense”.

8

OK, OK. Thanks Dozy.