The phrase "a modest handful" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe a small, reasonable quantity of something, often implying that it is not excessive.
Example: "After the event, we were left with a modest handful of leftover snacks that we decided to share with the volunteers."
Alternatives: "a small number" or "a few".
When this correspondent last met him, in 2010, Na Kham Mwe wore an old vest and was escorted by a modest handful of heavily armed comrades.
Crowd loved Song 2. American fella behind me said 'these guys are gonna be big!' twitter.com/jonnot/status/… — Jonno T (@jonnot) April 13 , 2013Heading back towards the smaller Mojave tent, a huge crowd dispersed from a triumphant alt-j set to reveal a modest handful left watching NME hopes Palma Violets.
The modest handful of pine nuts in this recipe round out what might otherwise have been an otherwise bland of a plain pastry case, while also making it richer, and crumblier, than ever.
A small handful should do.
But where should you toss those modest handfuls of nuts?
A modest telescope should reveal a handful of moons; here, Tethys, Dione, and Rhea (left to right) lie close to the planet.
In addition to biomass, Samsø is experimenting on a modest scale with biofuels: a handful of farmers have converted their cars and tractors to run on canola oil.
A18 NEW YORK/REGION B1-6 HofEconomic Boost Lower Lower as Convention Nears With the Republican National Convention just two weeks away, signs are pointing to a modest economic boost for a handful of businesses in New York City.
City officials have promoted the Republican National Convention as a $265 million wave on the becalmed sea of New York City's summer economy, but now that the convention is two weeks away, signs point to a modest economic boost for a handful of businesses rather than a tide that lifts all boats.
Labor's Victorian election win was a modest affair, coming down to a handful of gains in Melbourne's south-eastern "sandbelt" and the success of Labor incumbents in defending their seats in the face of adverse redistributions.
Of those dukes, only a handful have played a (modest) part in national politics.These days, more people, including those whose names fall within Burke's purview, look more eagerly to the Sunday Times list of the 1,000 supposedly richest in Britain than to manuals of purplish blood.
