hook.

A rod bent into a curved shape, typically with one end free and the other end secured to a rope or other attachment.

A barbed metal hook used for fishing; a fishhook.

Any of various hook-shaped agricultural implements such as a billhook.

The curved needle used in the art of crochet.

The part of a hinge which is fixed to a post, and on which a door or gate hangs and turns.

A loop shaped like a hook under certain written letters, for example, g and j.

A tie-in to a current event or trend that makes a news story or editorial relevant and timely.

A snare; a trap.

An advantageous hold.

The projecting points of the thighbones of cattle; called also hook bones.

Removal or expulsion from a group or activity.

He is not handling this job, so we're giving him the hook.

A field sown two years in succession.

A grasp (of), an attachment (to).

A brief, punchy opening statement intended to get attention from an audience, reader, or viewer, and make them want to continue to listen to a speech, read a book, or watch a play.

A gimmick or element of a creative work intended to be attention-grabbing for the audience; a compelling idea for a story that will be sure to attract people's attention.

A finesse.

A jack (the playing card).

A sharp bend or angle in the course or length of an object (e.g. a bend in a river, etc.).

A spit or narrow cape of sand or gravel turned landward at the outer end, such as Sandy Hook in New Jersey.

A catchy musical phrase which forms the basis of a popular song.

The song's hook snared me.

A ship's anchor.

Part of a system's operation that can be intercepted to change or augment its behaviour.

We've added hooks to allow undefined message types to be handled with custom code.

An instance of playing a word perpendicular to a word already on the board, adding a letter to the start or the end of the word to form a new word.

A diacritical mark shaped like the upper part of a question mark, as in ỏ.

A háček.

Senses relating to sports. A curveball.

He threw a hook in the dirt.

Senses relating to sports. a basketball shot in which the offensive player, usually turned perpendicular to the basket, gently throws the ball with a sweeping motion of his arm in an upward arc with a follow-through which ends over his head. Also called hook shot.

Senses relating to sports. A ball that is rolled in a curved line.

Senses relating to sports. a type of punch delivered with the arm rigid and partially bent and the fist travelling nearly horizontally mesially along an arc

The heavyweight delivered a few powerful hooks that staggered his opponent.

Senses relating to sports. A type of shot played by swinging the bat in a horizontal arc, hitting the ball high in the air to the leg side, often played to balls which bounce around head height.

Senses relating to sports. A golf shot that (for the right-handed player) curves unintentionally to the left. (See draw, slice, fade.)

Senses relating to sports. The amount of spin placed on a bowling ball.

Any of the chevrons denoting rank.

A prostitute.

A pickpocket.

Synonym of shoulder (“the part of a wave that has not yet broken”).

A knee-shaped wooden join connecting the keel to the stem (post forming the frontmost part of the bow) or the sternpost in cog-like vessels or similar vessels.

To attach a hook to.

Hook the bag here, and the conveyor will carry it away.

To become attached, as by a hook.

The utensil holder hooks onto the side of the dishrack.

To catch with a hook (hook a fish).

He hooked a snake accidentally, and was so scared he dropped his rod into the water.

To work yarn into a fabric using a hook; to crochet.

To insert in a curved way reminiscent of a hook.

He hooked his fingers through his belt loops.

To ensnare or obligate someone, as if with a hook.

She's only here to try to hook a husband.

A free trial is a good way to hook customers.

To steal.

To connect (hook into, hook together).

If you hook your network cable into the jack, you'll be on the network.

To make addicted; to captivate.

He had gotten hooked on cigarettes in his youth.

I watched one episode of that TV series and now I'm hooked.

To acquire as a spouse.

To play a hook shot.

To succeed in heeling the ball back out of a scrum (used particularly of the team's designated hooker).

To use the hockey stick to trip or block another player

The opposing team's forward hooked me, but the referee didn't see it, so no penalty.

To swerve a ball; kick or throw a ball so it swerves or bends.

To engage in prostitution.

I had a cheap flat in the bad part of town, and I could watch the working girls hooking from my bedroom window.

To play a word perpendicular to another word by adding a single letter to the existing word.

To finesse.

To seize or pierce with the points of the horns, as cattle in attacking enemies; to gore.

To bend; to be curved.

To move or go with a sudden turn.

To play hooky; to skip school or a class

They hooked English, sneaking out behind the school and smoking cigarettes.