hand‧bag S3 /ˈhændbæɡ/ noun [countable]

1. a small bag in which a woman carries money and personal things Synonym : purse American English

2. handbags informal used humorously to describe a situation in which two people are fighting, but in a way that is so weak or lacking in force that the fight is funny to watch:
Dennis looked like he threw a punch, but it was just handbags.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

handbag
noun
ADJ. big, capacious, large
VERB + HANDBAG clutch, hold | carry | swing | delve into, fish about/around in, fumble in, reach into, rummage (around) in, search (in/through) She was rummaging in her handbag for her keys.
snatch She had her handbag snatched as she sat having a coffee.
PREP. from a/the ~, out of a/the ~ She took a pen out of her large leather handbag.
in a/the ~, into a/the ~ She put her purse into her handbag.
PHRASES the contents of a handbag

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲