# As a man with small hands, I have observed that..... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 2, 2011, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648 "2011-11-02T16:49:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/e19adc/32.png) [@6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/41 "2011-11-03T12:37:22Z")
> [@rhubarbarin](#): > > I disagree with the premise of this thread because I am hyper-aware of men’s hands, and I’ve noticed plenty of famous/rich/powerful dudes have small/girlish hands. It’s nice to know, **rhubarbarin** , that my observation of many, many, \*many \*famous/rich/powerful women having man hands is not so weird after all. ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/42 "2011-11-03T12:50:44Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Why on earth do you think anybody notices the size of your hands? Because several people have commented on it? I have very small hands, and have heard it many times, in all kinds of situations, from casual male acquintances at a dinner table to women having sex with me at the time. It is weird and usually slightly uncomfortable. There is nothing I can do about the size of my hands, yet it seems fair game to bring it up. I’d never think of commenting on similar issues about the people who comment on mine. But people do most certainly notice hand size and have preferences concerning it. Luckily I’m handsome and buff 😃 **Ellen Cherry** , hands have extremely limited potential for growth compared to most any other part of the human body, especially considering how much they are used in manual labor or training with free weights. Over the years I’ve increased my weight by half via free weight training, and am more muscular than average, but my hands are practically the same size as when I was a thin guy. ---
**Author:** ![Lucretia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/13edae/32.png) [@Lucretia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucretia)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/43 "2011-11-03T12:59:32Z")
> [@Toxylon](#): > > **Ellen Cherry** , hands have extremely limited potential for growth compared to most any other part of the human body, especially considering how much they are used in manual labor or training with free weights. Over the years I’ve increased my weight by half via free weight training, and am more muscular than average, but my hands are practically the same size as when I was a thin guy. I concur. My son inherited my frame as well, and when he was very thin, his hands didn’t look quite so disproportionate. 4 years in the Army has bulked him up quite a bit, but his “lady hands” remain the same. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/44 "2011-11-03T13:23:40Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > Won’t hands get larger with work? There are some muscles in there, after all. It seems in literature, in particular in relation to women’s hands, they’re always being described as “large and work-coarsened.” No. My SO has smallish, dainty hands. He works damn hard but his skin is softer and better than mine - just more naturally oiled, I guess. He has no callouses and I know he didn’t live a charmed life. Hell, he’s from an Asian family, he had to work like a dog. Spent years in his parents’ restaurant, no burns or scars from that either. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/45 "2011-11-03T13:33:17Z")
OK, I’ll believe you all. 🙂 Take this for what it’s worth: the smallest hands I’ve ever seen on a man was on Steve Nunn, the son of a former Kentucky governor, a former gubernatorial candidate himself, and a state legislator … who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison for the [murder](http://www.kentucky.com/2011/06/29/1792361/steve-nunn-pleads-guilty-in-court.html) of his girlfriend. A tall man, his arms were freakishly short, like barely extending past his waist, and he had these little bitty hands. It probably isn’t as dramatic as I remember, but I was around him several times during his appearances in televised candidate forums. Scroll down to the photos at the story link above; you can sort of see the tiny in the one that’s visible. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/46 "2011-11-03T13:57:09Z")
Ryan Gosling has small hands. _(Seriously! It’s like he’s photoshopped!)_ ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/47 "2011-11-03T14:02:55Z")
You know who else had small hands? Yep! ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/48 "2011-11-03T14:10:17Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > You know who else had small hands? > > Yep! Napolean? ---
**Author:** ![miss\_elizabeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@miss\_elizabeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miss_elizabeth)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/49 "2011-11-03T16:55:32Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > How about some guy rejected for the Catholic priesthood because of the cloven hooves and tail? As if. Have you seen what those dudes are up to? You’d probably be considered “uniquely qualified.” 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/50 "2011-11-04T08:52:33Z")
I have to admit that hands are very important to me. Like everybody else, if they’ll admit it, my first glance of a new person tells me if they’re attractive to me. (Not necessarily good looking, but not repugnant.) After that comes their personality which gives clues to their character. And I notice their hands. I like ropey hands. Doesn’t matter if they’re stubby or have long fingers. I like hands that reflect they’ve lived life; calluses, raised veins from doing manual labor (is scultpting manual labor? because it could come from that.) Capable, doey hands. More than likely people who sport those hands also have striving souls. Anybody who has soft hands, or, MUCH worse, gives a limp-fish handshake, can only get token acceptance from me. That’s my cue to run for the hills. Give me chapped knuckles anytime, over that. ---
**Author:** ![the\_thecat\_hat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@the\_thecat\_hat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_thecat_hat)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/51 "2011-11-04T11:45:46Z")
Hi. This is the sultry voice of Erica Strummin, and I am about to tell you a secret that the big pharmaceutical companies don’t want you to know about. We hear it every day: “If you want to be an important person, you have to have big hands.” But the latest studies show that it is not the length of the fingers, but the size of the knuckles, that really makes the difference. I’m here to introduce you to the revolutionary new formula Eumusdakwitt, guaranteed to give you thicker, wider, fuller knuckles. Call today and we will ship you a free one-month supply of Eumusdakwitt in an unmarked brown paper bag, wrapped in tape so week you can open it no matter how girlish your hands are. Get those hands you have always desired and become an important person. Remember, if the glove don’t fit … Eumusdakwitt. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/52 "2011-11-04T12:53:42Z")
snort ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/53 "2011-11-04T13:09:43Z")
> [@chiroptera](#): > > I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen hand size and attractiveness discussed _Crosses off another item from list of topics never discussed on the Straight Dope_ ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/54 "2011-11-04T13:14:28Z")
When I was a pre-med student, my hands were assessed and I was informed that I would do well to specialize in gynocology where my small, delicate, girly hands would be a positive asset. I dropped out of pre-med but have since confirmed this view in my private research. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/55 "2011-11-04T13:22:56Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > OK, I’ll believe you all. 🙂 > > Take this for what it’s worth: the smallest hands I’ve ever seen on a man was on Steve Nunn, the son of a former Kentucky governor, a former gubernatorial candidate himself, and a state legislator … who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison for the [murder](http://www.kentucky.com/2011/06/29/1792361/steve-nunn-pleads-guilty-in-court.html) of his girlfriend. > > A tall man, his arms were freakishly short, like barely extending past his waist, and he had these little bitty hands. It probably isn’t as dramatic as I remember, but I was around him several times during his appearances in televised candidate forums. Scroll down to the photos at the story link above; you can sort of see the tiny in the one that’s visible. This is…less than reassuring. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2011, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/56 "2011-11-05T13:23:39Z")
> [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](#): > > When I was a pre-med student, my hands were assessed and I was informed that I would do well to specialize in gynocology where my small, delicate, girly hands would be a positive asset. > > I dropped out of pre-med but have since confirmed this view in my private research. My wife’s small hands are, for this exact reason, in demand during deliveries. (It’s veterinary medicine, but the logic is the same.) ---
**Author:** ![brittekland](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@brittekland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brittekland)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2011, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648/57 "2011-11-05T16:10:58Z")
“Insertion” “Fisting” There, I uttered it… for cryin out loud. :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/as-a-man-with-small-hands-i-have-observed-that/601648.md?page=2)