English

Adjective

nearhand ‎(comparative more nearhand, superlative most nearhand)

1. Nearby.
   • 1894, Royal Commission on Agriculture, “Minutes of evidence taken before Her Majesty's commissioners”, in (Please provide the title of the work), page 527:

     We are nearer hand to the great coal districts, and there is a tendency for the men to go there. We are nearer hand to the great mining centres than are those that Mr. Scott represented

   • 1902, Francis Lynde, The master of Appleby, page 518:

     But whether, when he should break his camp at Forney's plantation, he would go northward after Morgan and the prisoners, or cross the river at some nearhand ford to chase our main, none of our scouts could tell us.

   • 1921, United States naval medical bulletin, volume 15, page 320:

     The person discovering the fire will immediately endeavor to extinguish it by the use of the nearest means at hand, such as suffocation by blankets or other material, use of w7ater, or the nearest hand fire extinguisher or pyrene outfit

Adverb

nearhand ‎(comparative nearer hand, superlative nearest hand)

1. (now dialectal) Nearly.
2. (now dialectal) Nearby.

Preposition

nearhand

1. (now dialectal) Nearby.
   • 1862, Margaret Maitland, Passages in the Life of, p. 247:

     And when I was nearhand the house, I met Menie, her daughter, and she told me that they had heard word from Sandy that morning [...].

   • 1904, Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons, Papers by command, volume 42, page 32:

     but I will tell you that some of my coopers went into the fishing station and vomited, owing to the smell from the whales, and they declared to me when they came back that it was the last time they would go nearhand them

   • 1926, Catholic World, vol. 123, p. 199:

     You'll be always nearhand us in Tierneys' mill.