A handful is the amount of something you can hold in one hand at a time. When you scoop up sand at the beach or grab a handful of popcorn from the bowl, you're taking as much as your hand can comfortably cup and carry. The size of a handful varies: a handful of blueberries might be twenty or thirty berries, while a handful of baseballs is probably just two or three.

The word also describes a small number of things or people. When your teacher says “only a handful of students remembered to bring their permission slips,” she means just a few people, not very many. A handful could be three, could be seven, but it's definitely not twenty.

Interestingly, when someone says a person is “a handful,” they usually mean that person requires a lot of attention or energy. A puppy that keeps escaping the yard and digging holes is quite a handful. A little brother who asks endless questions and never sits still might be a real handful for a babysitter. It's not always a complaint: sometimes being a handful just means you're energetic, curious, and keep everyone on their toes.