a contest, esp a race, in which competitors are given advantages or disadvantages of weight, distance, time, etc, in an attempt to equalize their chances of winning
b.
the advantage or disadvantage prescribed
3. golf
the number of strokes by which a player's averaged score exceeds the standard scratch score for the particular course: used as the basis for handicapping in competitive play
4. old-fashioned, sometimes offensive
any physical or mental disability
verbWord forms: -caps, -capping or -capped(transitive)
5.
to be a hindrance or disadvantage to
6.
to assign a handicap or handicaps to
7.
to organize (a contest) by handicapping
8. US and Canadian
a.
to attempt to forecast the winner of (a contest, esp a horse race)
b.
to assign odds for or against (a contestant)
Word origin
C17: probably from hand in cap, a lottery game in which players drew forfeits from a cap or deposited money in it