handedness
(ˈhændɪdnɪs)
[f. handed a. + -ness.]
The tendency to, or the preference for, the use of either the right or the left hand. Also transf.
| 1921 Trans. Utah Acad. Sci. II. 59 (title) The problem of handedness. Ibid. 62 It is argued by some that a child's handedness is a result of imitating its parents. 1936 F. A. E. Crew in Jrnl. Genetics XXXIII. 67 It seemed to me necessary to examine each rat..for evidence of this right-hand and left-hand turning habit,{ddd} [68] In any examination of handedness the experimentation must not be complicated by the presence of an alternating light. 1937 N. & Q. 10 July 32/1 The First Series of an exhaustive scientific work on the subject of ‘Handedness’. 1961 Lancet 12 Aug. 363/1 The left hemisphere is usually dominant for speech regardless of the handedness of the individual. 1962 Listener 10 May 814/3 Proteins..contain amino acids (all of one particular handedness) joined together. 1973 Sci. Amer. May 27/3 Background data, including..length of postpartum separation from siblings and handedness of the mother. |