kiss hands en · VERB
Etymology
Originally, people appointed by the sovereign would demonstrate fealty by kissing the sovereign's hand.
Meanings
-
(UK) To formally accept an appointment as prime minister or certain other ministerial positions in a royal ceremony.
His Majesty received in audience the Rt Hon Andrew Burnham MP and requested him to form a new Administration. The Rt Hon Andrew Burnham MP accepted The King’s offer and kissed hands upon his appointment as Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury.
2026 July 20, Buckingham Palace:Bishop Wilberforce had accompanied Mr. Gladstone to Windsor, when he went to kiss hands on his appointment as Prime Minister.
1896, Reginald Baliol Brett Esher (Viscount), The Yoke of Empire: Sketches of the Queen's Prime Ministers, page 175:
- Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see kiss, hands.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| kisses hands | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| kissed hands | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| kissed hands | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| kissing hands | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic |