the upper hand
noun
: the position of having power or being in control in a particular situation
He always has to have the upper hand.
—sometimes used figurativelyThe infection was gaining the upper hand and the patient's condition was deteriorating.
Examples of the upper hand in a Sentence
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However, as inventory is growing in parts of the country and mortgage rates are widely expected to slide down modestly throughout the year, buyers in the Sun Belt and the Midwest are starting to have the upper hand, according to housing experts.
—
Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
Three years into Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia is making only small-scale advances on the battlefield but has the upper hand both militarily and diplomatically.
—Dave Lawler, Axios, 24 Feb. 2025
Bottom line, the bulls still have the upper hand—uptrend intact, earnings solid—but the bears are circling and getting stronger.
—Adam Sarhan, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2025
Ti clearly has the upper hand against AMD’s competing RX 7000-series graphics cards.
—PCMAG, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for the upper hand
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Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
Three years into Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia is making only small-scale advances on the battlefield but has the upper hand both militarily and diplomatically.
—Dave Lawler, Axios, 24 Feb. 2025
Bottom line, the bulls still have the upper hand—uptrend intact, earnings solid—but the bears are circling and getting stronger.
—Adam Sarhan, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2025
Ti clearly has the upper hand against AMD’s competing RX 7000-series graphics cards.
—PCMAG, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for the upper hand
Cite this Entry
“The upper hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20upper%20hand. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
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