A small tool or device held in the hand during use, especially in dentistry or medical equipment like a dental drill.
From 'hand' (Old English 'hand') + 'piece' (Old French 'piece', meaning a separate part). The term emerged in the 20th century as specialized medical equipment became more precise and tool-specific.
A dental handpiece spins up to 400,000 revolutions per minute—it's one of the fastest-spinning devices in regular human use, and dentists develop incredible skill controlling it with millimeter-level precision inside a patient's mouth.
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