| 词汇 | by hook or by crook |
| 释义 | Idiom by hook or by crook if you intend to do something by hook or by crook, you are determined not to let anything stop you doing it and are ready to use any methods.I decided that I was going to get that job by hook or by crook. by hook or (by) crookIn any way possible. A: "But we're not allowed to submit more than one entry per person." B: "Oh, forget that—we are winning this contest by hook or by crook!" We need to court that big investor by hook or by crook, so shameless flattery is a fine place to start! by hook or by crookIf you say you will do something by hook or by crook, you mean that you will find a way to do it, even if it is difficult or involves dishonest methods. He would have to see her again by hook or by crook. He is determined to hang on to power by hook or by crook. Note: The hook in this expression is a billhook, which is a cutting tool with a hooked blade. A shepherd's crook is a long stick with a curve at the top. This expression may refer to a medieval law which allowed ordinary people to collect firewood from forests belonging to the King or a lord, so long as they took only dead wood which they could reach with crooks and billhooks. by hook or by crookby one means or another; by fair means or foul.The hook referred to here is probably a billhook or heavy curved pruning knife; one of the earliest recorded instances of this phrase is in Gower's Confessio Amantis ( 1390 ), which uses the rare word hepe (meaning ‘a pruning knife’) in place of hook . Various etymologies for the expression have been put forward, none of them entirely convincing. In 1822 William Cobbett wrote of people who lived near woodland being allowed, under the ancient forest law of England, to gather dead branches for fuel, which they may have brought down from the trees literally by hook or by crook . 1998 Adèle Geras Silent Snow, Secret Snow Till then, she would hang on. By hook or by crook. Come what may. by ˌhook or by ˈcrook(of something difficult) by any method, whether it is honest or not: Don’t worry — we’ll have the money ready by 4 o’clock, by hook or by crook.This may come from the practice in the past of allowing workers to use the tools of their trade (billhooks for farm workers, crooks for shepherds) to pull down loose wood from their employer’s trees to use as firewood.by hook or by crook By whatever means possible, fair or unfair. by hook or by crookBy any possible means. There is some disagreement as to the origin of this expression, which used to mean specifically by fair means or foul—that is, legal or illegal (crooked). One writer suggests it may come from the medieval custom authorizing one to help oneself to as much firewood as could be reached by a shepherd’s crook and cut down with a billhook. Others believe it simply uses rhyming words for “direct” (reachable with a long hook) and “indirect” (roundabout). In any event, it dates back to the time of the English theologian John Wycliffe, who used it in his Controversial Tracts (ca. 1380). by hook or by crookBy any means necessary to accomplish the purpose; one way or another. Several explanations for this phrase have come down over the years. One is that it refers to two Irish towns, Hook Head and Crook, through which Oliver Cromwell tried to capture the nearby city of Waterford. Another is a medieval custom of allowing villagers to collect for firewood any loose branches that they could pull down with a long-handled curved implement. A third explanation is the most plausible: shepherds rounded up their flocks by means of a crook, a long staff with a curved end. A shepherd would chase after a reluctant ram, ewe, or lamb and hook it with his staff by any means . . . by hook or by crook. |
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