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`よこす`, `渡す`, `送る/贈る`, and `届ける`. So far these words have cropped up here and
there during my study, and all of them have at least one dictionary entry that
says "to send," or "to hand over." The fact that they are all transitive verbs
compounds my confusion further. How exactly do they differ from one another?

Below are what little possible nuances I have gleaned from various sources
(links at the bottom):

**1. よこす**  
A.) This is _only_ applicable when the speaker is the recipient. You cannot
describe your own action (i.e. sending) using よこす.

B.) It has a somewhat negative connotation, so you _should not_ use it when
you receive something from 目上の人.

**2. 渡す**  
A.) _Only_ applicable when the speaker is the *provider.  
(*Is "giver" a better term?)  
B.) This is _only_ suitable for face-to-face exchange.

**3. 送る/贈る**  
Unlike the abovementioned, these work both ways. You "give" someone something,
or someone "gives" you something.  
*The nuance between the 漢字 has already been discussed before on this platform.

**4. 届ける**  
A.) _Mostly_ used when the delivery of a lost article is involved. E.g.
`あの財布が落ちてたので、交番に届けた`。  
B.) The recipient's expectation is _implied_.  
C.) I do not know if one can say `警察官が僕に忘れちゃった荷物を届けた`, since the subject is
the officer instead of the speaker.

N.b. Words in italics are done on purpose to reflect the fact that they are
most likely overstatements. If anyone could disprove any of them, I would
really appreciate it.

Reference:  
[What is the difference between 渡す and
よこす?](https://hinative.com/ja/questions/3057237 "What is the difference
between 渡す and よこす?")  
[What is the difference between 送る and
よこす?](https://hinative.com/ja/questions/213387 "What is the difference between
送る and よこす?")  
[What is the difference between 送る and
よこす?](https://hinative.com/ja/questions/222156 "What is the difference between
送る and よこす?")  
[What are the differences between the words 送る, 出す,
届ける?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/55378/what-are-the-
differences-between-the-
words-%E9%80%81%E3%82%8B-%E5%87%BA%E3%81%99-%E5%B1%8A%E3%81%91%E3%82%8B "What
are the differences between the words 送る, 出す, 届ける?")
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question
words nuances
よこす、渡す、送る/贈る、届ける: The difference?
I would say the distinction between 渡す, 送る and 届ける maps quite neatly to the
distinction between the English "hand over", "send" and "deliver". Of course
two words are never _exactly_ equivalent, but I'd say the correspondences are
close enough to be very helpful in this case.

**渡す is "hand over"**  
The focus is on the specific act of passing the item from one person to
another. For that reason it's _generally_ only used for face-to-face
encounters, since other methods of transferring an item are more indirect and
there isn't one particular moment where it passes from one person's hands to
the other's.

I don't think there's an actual restriction on using it in a particular
direction, but it may be more common with the speaker as the "giver" simply
because it's a very neutral, matter-of-fact verb, and you'd usually use a more
grateful-sounding verb like くれる when talking about receiving something.
Nonetheless, I think the passive 渡される at least is relatively common.

**送る is "send"**  
In contrast to 渡す, this one is inherently _indirect_. You're almost certainly
_not_ physically handing over the item yourself when you 送る something. You
could be sending it through the mail, or passing it on through an
acquaintance, or sending it over the internet, but not handing it over face-
to-face.

Note that 贈る, pronounced the same but with different kanji, actually functions
quite differently and doesn't have any inherent indirectness - it can be used
regardless of whether you're sending something via mail or handing it over in
person; the only thing that matters is that you're providing it _as a gift_. I
wouldn't equate this おくる to "send", and indeed I don't think we have a close
English equivalent.

**届ける is "deliver"**  
The focus here is on the act of _transporting_ an item from one place to an
intended destination. It doesn't make much difference whether the item is
something you prepared yourself, something you received from someone else or
something you just happened to find on the street, what's important is that
you're physically taking it to its destination yourself. That destination can
be the intended recipient, or, if you don't know the recipient, somewhere that
can help it on its way to its recipient (such as a police station, lost and
found collection, etc.)

Your sentence 警察官が僕に忘れちゃった荷物を届けた wouldn't usually be used, but only because
you don't usually use plain verbs in general when you yourself are the object
- most verbs feel like they're by default from the perspective of the subject,
so they sound a little awkward on their own when talking from the complete
opposite perspective. You would usually say 届けて **くれた** for someone delivering
something to you, or perhaps something like 届けに来た if you want to make a more
neutral-sounding statement.

**よこす is ???**  
Unlike the other three verbs (but similar to 贈る), this one doesn't really have
a neat English equivalent. Thankfully, it's also the least common of the lot,
and I can't think of many situations where you would need to use it over one
of the other alternatives.

As you say, its main quirks are that it is always from the perspective of the
recipient, and sounds significantly less respectful than any of the other
options. It can certainly come in handy in rough, casual banter, but should be
used only with great care, if at all, in polite company.
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answer