Hand Over Fist – Meaning, Origin & Usage

You may have heard the phrase “hand over fist” being spoken, usually in a business or sales context. If you’ve ever wondered what it means, you’ve come to just the place because we’re going to spell it all out for you.

We will also cover how the phrase may have originated, and how the phrase is often used, complete with handy examples for perspective. Then we’ll go over different variations of the phrase and alternative expressions that you can use in its place, before answering your most frequently asked questions on the subject.

And without further ado, let’s get straight to it.

Understanding the meaning of the phrase “hand over fist”

In its literal sense, the phrase “hand over fist” is a nautical term which refers to a technique that’s used to rig sailing ships. However, today the phrase is used in a more figurative sense, to refer to making significant progress or acquiring something rapidly, frequently used in the context of financial gain. In this figurative sense, the phrase is an idiom that has to be deduced as a whole rather than from the individual words.

The historical origins of the expression “hand over fist” 

The phrase “hand over fist” first originated as the very similar phrase “hand over hand” which dates as far back as the early 1700’s. It is a nautical term which is used to refer to a technique that sailors used to rigg old sailing ships. They would climb hand over hand up a thick rope, in fast progression, continuing to do so once the sails were hoisted.

It wasn’t until the early 1800’s that the phrase became “hand over fist” thanks to American sailors, who chose to use a more descriptive phrase, since there’s a loose, flat hand that gets passed over a fist that’s clenching the rope.

The Oxford English Dictionary’s earliest evidence for hand over fist is from 1803, in the writing of J. Davis.

Over time, the phrase also began to be used as a metaphor for fast or rapid progression in general, including in such contexts as business and sales, where the phrase has seen the most use.

How the phrase “hand over fist” is used today, with examples

Today, the phrase “hand over fist” is most often used in the context of business, sales, and general money making or fund raising. Here are some examples of how the phrase could be used in such contexts:

• The new company was making money hand over fist thanks to its innovative product.
• The customers were lining up out the door and Dave was making money hand over fist.
• The organisation’s going from strength to strength since becoming remote-first. There has been rapid growth and the praise is well-deserved.
• That crowd-funding project on Kickstarter is going great – people are going hand over fist to get it going.
• Since that first £100 donation people are going hand over fist to contribute to the cause.
• With Christmas soon approaching, the toy store is expecting sales to increase hand over fist.
• After the stock market surge, investors were seeing their portfolios grow hand over fist.

However, while the phrase is most often used to refer to rapid and significant financial gain, it can also be used to refer to rapid and significant progression in other endeavours. For example, here are some other ways you can utilise the phrase “hand over fist”:

• We are sinking capital hand over fist in that industry now because the expense of materials in the industry is going up so quickly.
• The struggling business was losing customers hand over fist due to its poor customer service.

Variations of the phrase and alternative expressions you can use

If you want to say something is happening “hand over fist,” meaning rapidly or in large quantities, you could perhaps choose to use any of the following variations. They are synonymous with the phrase and they might be easier for children or non-native speakers to understand.

• Gaining ground quickly
• Quickly gaining ground
• Growing rapidly
• Growing at a rapid pace
• Growing like wildfire
• Spreading like wildfire
• Coming on in leaps and bounds
• Coming in droves
• Coming in thick and fast
• Swiftly accumulating
• Speedily
• Increasingly 
• At a tremendous rate
• Effortlessly growing

Use of the phrase “hand over fist” in literature

The phrase “hand over fist” appears in modern literature in the book The Firm written by John Grisham, and published in 1991,(which later became a film with Tom Cruise). The phrase appears in the context of financial dealings and the rapid accumulation of wealth, illustrating the temptations of the legal profession.

FAQ

What is hand over hand prompting and why is it bad?

The phrase “hand over hand prompting” is not synonymous with the phrase “hand over fist”. The phrase “hand over hand prompting” refers to guiding someone’s hand (such as a child’s hand) with one’s hand so as to help them accomplish something, for example with play blocks or jigsaw pieces. This method of teaching is discouraged because it does not prompt learning. The learner should have agency over their own actions.

Final word

So, to sum up, the phrase “hand over fist” refers to the fast and rapid progress in something, and is most often used in the context of financial gains. Thus the phrase is most likely to be heard in business or in sales, but it can be used to refer to rapid progress or losses in any endeavour. Thus it can be used to describe both positive achievements and successive failures or losses.

The original phrase was “hand over hand”, however by the 1900’s this became “hand over fist” which is a nautical term derived from a technique that sailors used to rig sailing ships, which features rapid and sustained progression. However, the phrase later came to be used in a figurative sense. There are several phrases that are synonymous with the phrase that can often be used in its place.