grappling hook
4
5.7
- noun
- /ˈɡræp.lɪŋ hʊk/
:
garfio
- They attached the grappling hook to the rope to pull the boat closer to the dock.
- throw grappling hooks
- grappling hooks and rope
- shoot a grappling hook
I said he's got a grappling hook and she's back here.
- I said he's got a grappling hook and she's back here.
Examples
-
Stanley slides an iron grappling hook through the mask's eye holes and holds it overboard.
Fiction book (1994) -
He waded into the surf, still washing high, and whiffed a small grappling hook over its gunnel, hauling it near enough to grab and drag clear.
Fiction book (1997) -
I would have needed a grappling hook to raise her.
Fiction book (1998) -
A grappling hook is thrown high over the roof; they prepare for an assault.
Fiction book (1995) -
"Ready the grappling hooks," Larkin called.
Fiction book (1994) -
Plissken slides away from him, looks up, and sees the grappling hook stuck into the side of the helicopter.
Fiction book (1996) -
They're coming with grappling hooks and ladders.
-
He reaches up and begins prying loose the grappling hook.
Fiction book (1996) -
The line shoots out and a gleaming grappling hook slams into the side of Plissken's chopper, the prongs clawing in, holding.
Fiction book (1996) -
Women were rumored to have disappeared around the pond, and once, after we had carved hearts and our names in the tops of the tallest trees, I watched with the other boys as the men with grappling hooks unsuccessfully dragged the muddy water for a missing person.
Fiction book (1998)
Synonyms
192
1.0
A curved piece used to catch or hang things
6
7.4
A tool with hooks used to grab and lift things
1
9.1
A tool with hooks on a rope that you throw to catch or pull things
1
9.5
A small hook with several points on a rope used to hold or pull things
A metal tool with hooks used to hold and pull things with a rope
How Secure
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: a 'hook' used for 'grappling' (grabbing or taking hold). A learner who knows the verbs/nouns 'grapple' and 'hook' can infer a hooked tool for grasping or climbing, and the noun-noun/verb+noun formation is a common, cross-linguistically transparent pattern.
Etymology
Grappling hook comes from a simple image: a rope used for grappling with sharp hooks that you throw so the hook can catch the side of a ship or a rock. That's why a grappling hook is a tool to 'grab' or 'hold' things so people can climb or pull them up.