from
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)
secondhand
adv 1: by indirect means; "I heard about it only secondhand or
thirdhand"; "he prefers to buy secondhand"
adj 1: derived from what is primary or original; not firsthand;
"a secondhand report"; "a secondhand account of a memory
of something once read"; "most of our knowledge is
secondhand"
2: previously used or owned by another; "bought a secondhand (or
used) car" [syn: {secondhand}, {used}]
from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Secondhand \Sec"ond*hand`\, a.
1. Not original or primary; received from another; as,
secondhand information.
[1913 Webster +PJC]
They have but a secondhand or implicit knowledge.
--Locke.
[1913 Webster]
2. Not new; already or previously possessed or used by
another; as, a secondhand book, garment.
[1913 Webster]
{At second hand}. See {Hand}, n., 10.
[1913 Webster]