hand in

Meaning

This phrasal verb means to submit or give a piece of work, a document, or an assignment to a person in authority, such as a teacher or an employer. It is a separable phrasal verb, meaning the object can be placed between 'hand' and 'in'.

Examples

• Don't forget to hand in your homework before you leave.

  Don't forget to hand in your homework before you leave.

• I need to hand my essay in by Friday afternoon.

  I need to hand my essay in by Friday afternoon.

• She realized she forgot to hand in the final page of the test.

  She realized she forgot to hand in the final page of the test.

• The teacher collected the assignments as we handed them in.

  The teacher collected the assignments as we handed them in.

• Please hand in your keys when you check out of the dorm.

  Please hand in your keys when you check out of the dorm.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ I need to hand in it today.

  ✓ I need to hand it in today.

  When the object of a separable phrasal verb is a pronoun (like 'it' or 'them'), it must be placed between the verb and the particle.

• ✗ Please give in your homework to the teacher.

  ✓ Please hand in your homework to the teacher.

  'Give in' means to surrender or yield to pressure. To submit work, use 'hand in' or 'turn in'.

Related Expressions

Practice

• Make sure you ___ your essay before the deadline.

  💡 Submit to the teacher.

  Show answer

  hand in

• He had to stay up late to finish the project so he could ___ the report on time.

  💡 Submit.

  Show answer

  hand in