Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

second hand

2 adverb
     
second hand2
1 if you get something second hand, it is not new and has been used by other people before
get/buy something second hand
We got most of our furniture second hand.
2 if you hear something second hand, the person who tells you is not the person who originally said it:
It may not be true - I only heard it second hand.
3 if you experience something second hand, you experience it through other people, rather than directly

➔ (at) first hand

at first1 (8)
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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