noun
hand of cards; one's hand
In card games, the set of cards a player holds. Also used figuratively for the resources or options one has available.
彼は手札をじっと見つめて、次の一手を考えた。
He stared at his hand and thought about his next move.
交渉では、まだ隠している手札がある。
noun
name tag; nameplate; business card
Dated term for a small card bearing one's name, such as a name tag, nameplate, or business card. Modern Japanese usually uses 名札 for name tags and 名刺 for business cards.
昔の会合では、出席者は手札を胸につけていた。
At old-fashioned gatherings, attendees wore name tags on their chests.
noun
wallet-sized photo
Abbreviation of 手札型 or 手札判, referring to a small, wallet-sized photograph. Used mainly in the context of photo printing sizes.
証明写真は手札サイズでお願いします。
Please provide a wallet-sized photo for the ID.
In negotiations, I still have some cards up my sleeve.
Full form of the abbreviation 手札 for wallet-sized photos; 手札型 explicitly means 'wallet size'.
Compound of 手 (hand) and 札 (card/tag). The card-game sense is the original meaning; the name-tag and photo-size senses developed from the idea of a small card held or carried.