hand over hand

How climbers ascend

Hand over hand describes motion where one hand reaches past the other in alternating sequence, each gripping ahead of the last: climbing a rope hand over hand, pulling in the fishing line hand over hand.

The phrase suggests steady, continuous progress through repeated grasping motions.

climbing

rope

Thick twisted fibers

ascendMove upward
gripSecure manual hold
ladderPortable climbing frame

haul · rappel · belay · harness · anchor · pitch · overhang · boulder · lead · chalk

pulling

rope

Thick twisted fibers

haulPull or carry laboriously
tugShort forceful pull
hoistRaise with tackle

heave · drag · draw · yank · tow · grasp · grip · retrieve · winch · capstan

Categories

playground equipmentmonkey bars, slide, see-saw, teeter-totter, climbing frame
tug of wartug of war, heave, dig in, lean back, team coordination
deafblindHelen Keller, intervener, interveners, intervenor, braille display
tree movementtree climbing, climbing, brachiation, swinging, clambering

Opposites

method of movement/climbing

hand over handdead hang

Motionless bar suspension

stationary · static · dangling · motionless · immobile

rate of progress

hand over handslowly

At reduced speed

haltingly · at a standstill · laboriously · stalled · going nowhere

Family

hand, over, hands, handed, handing, handy, handle, handful, handedness

Familiarity: Top 200,000
Profile: Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Concrete · Everyday, not technical · Rated G