fishingn.1
/ˈfɪʃɪŋ/ 1. The action of fish v.1
a. The action, art, or practice of catching fish.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [noun]
visseþ1297
fishinga1400
piscation1620
riviationa1676
take1833
piscicapture1863
fish1880
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 13278 Petre and andreu..Wit þair fissing war þai fedd.
1464 in W. H. Stevenson Rec. Borough Nottingham (1883) II. 374 For a lyne boght for the same fisshyng.
1570 Act 13 Eliz. c. 11 §3 Such Cods and Lings as they shall happen to take..by their own fishing.
1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. iii. 105 The best fishing that the whole Ocean yeeldeth, is upon the coasts of Orknay and Zetland.
1762 H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Painting II. i. 19 Representations in miniature of the..huntings, fishings and productions of the country.
1814 W. Scott Waverley I. iv. 45 Of all diversions..fishing is the worst qualified to amuse a man who is at once indolent and impatient. View more context for this quotation
b. proverbs.
ΚΠ
1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue i. xi. sig. E It is..yll fyshyng before the net.
1613 Bp. J. Hall Holy Panegyrick 13 There is no fishing so good as in troubled waters.
a1665 J. Goodwin Πλήρωμα τὸ Πνευματικόv (1670) xiii. 362 Those Proverbial Sayings; There is no fishing like to a fishing in the sea, no service like the Service of a King.
1671 F. Philipps Regale Necessarium 432 It grew into a Proverb amongst us not yet forgotten, No fishing to the Sea, no Service to the King.
c. transferred and figurative. Also with adverbs, as about, out, up (see senses of the verb).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > endeavour > searching or seeking > [noun]
seeking1303
out-seekinga1382
searchinga1382
search1426
laita1500
searching out1531
hunting-down1542
fishing1548
research1577
upseeking1594
riping1815
questing1848
casting1856
1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Matt. iv. f. 19 The newe fyshyng, whiche serued..wyth the nette of the Gospell to catche men.
a1629 W. Hinde Faithfull Remonstr. (1641) vii. 27 Witnesse hereof, in parents such fishing for heires.
1720 London Gaz. No. 5909/2 Forbidding..either the fishing up, or receiving any of the..Effects that might be driven on the Coast.
1740 S. Richardson Pamela I. xxxi. 203 Why..is all this fishing about for something, when there is nothing?
1889 Cent. Dict. Fishing out, the removal of fish from a fish-pond, the ‘drawing’ of a pond.
2. to go (also Middle English wade) a-fishing:
a. literal. (Old English had on fiscoð gán).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fish [verb (intransitive)]
fishc888
to go (also Middle English wade) a-fishing1297
to wet one's line1653
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 2198 For ȝe beþ men bet iteiȝt to ssofle & to spade To cartstaf & to ploustaf & a wissinge [v.rr. a fischyng, in fuschinge, to fysschynge] to wade.
b. transferred (nonce-use) To rob on the highways.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > rob [verb (intransitive)] > rob on highway
to go (also Middle English wade) a-fishing1604
pad1639
footpad1871
1604 Penniles Parl. Threed-bare Poets in Iacke of Dover Quest of Inquirie sig. G3 Souldiers that haue no meanes to thriue by plaine dealing,..go a fyshing on Salisburie plaine.
3. The privilege or right of catching fish in certain waters; common and several fishing = common fishery and several fishery at fishery n. 4.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > legal right > rights to do or use something > [noun] > hunting or fishing rights
several fishery1426
piscary1475
(free) warren1485
fishing1495
chasea1500
fugationc1503
piscage1610
fishery1703
shooting1848
shoot1861
rod1898
fishing rights1936
1495 Act 2 Hen. VII c. 62 §1 The Mede called the Kingis Mede and half the fysshing of the Watir called Temise.
1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Surueyeng xi. f. 9 Also of mylnes, seuerall fysshinges, & commen fysshinges, what they be worthe.
1607 J. Norden Surueyors Dialogue 110 Hath the Lord of the Mannor any peculiar fishing within any river.
1788 Filey Inclos. Act 24 Wrecks, fishings, and all other royalties.
4. A place or facilities for catching fish; fishing-ground, fishery.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [noun] > fishing-ground
fishinga1599
piscarya1625
fishing-ground1641
fishery1699
fish-range1699
mark1965
a1599 E. Spenser View State Ireland 95 in J. Ware Two Hist. Ireland (1633) A good towne, having..a plentifull fishing.
1641 in J. Knox View Brit. Empire (1785) II. 397 The Imployment of the Fishermen..till they come to their Fishings outwards bound.
1795 J. Richardson in J. Robertson Agric. Perth 377 Upon the Tumble..there are scattered fishings belonging to different proprietors.
1815 W. Scott Guy Mannering I. vii. 110 Ellangowan's hen-roosts were plundered..his fishings poached.
Compounds
C1. Simple attributive. (In sense 1.)
fishing-bark n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > fishing vessel > [noun] > other types of fishing vessel
spindlers-boat1243
manfare1326
stall boat1328
dogger1338
hackboat1344
coble1493
peter-boat1540
monger1558
trimboat1558
shotter1580
crab-skuit1614
fly-boat1614
cantera1642
dogger-boat1646
cag1666
yawl1670
barca-longa1681
hogboat1784
fishing-smack1785
hooker1801
hatch-boat1828
pinkie1840
fishing-bark1841
pookhaun1851
garookuh1855
jigger1860
fisher-bark1862
fisher-keel1870
Norwegian1872
scaf1877
mule coble1883
mule1884
Zulu1884
novy1885
tosher1885
skipjack1887
fleeter1888
fishing-float1893
rodney1895
mutton-ham boat1899
nobby1899
sinagot1927
sport fisherman1937
sport fisher1940
ski-boat1964
belly boat1976
1841 W. Spalding Italy & Ital. Islands III. 349 The list..included fishing-barks and small coasters.
fishing-basket n.
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the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > other fishing equipment > [noun] > angler's basket
rope basket1811
fishing-basket1838
creel1842
1838 G. P. R. James Robber I. i. 12 The fishing-basket under the arm.
fishing-boat n.
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society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > fishing vessel > [noun]
fisher-boatc1440
fish-craft1480
fisherman1604
fisher-ship1614
fish-ship1676
fishing-boat1732
fishing-ship1785
fish-boat1792
catcher1829
fishera1862
fishing-craft1875
1732 G. Berkeley Alciphron I. v. i. 266 Several Fishing-boats and Lighters gliding up and down.
1836 F. Marryat Mr. Midshipman Easy I. xiii. 211 They had received information from the men of a fishing-boat.
fishing-craft n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > fishing vessel > [noun]
fisher-boatc1440
fish-craft1480
fisherman1604
fisher-ship1614
fish-ship1676
fishing-boat1732
fishing-ship1785
fish-boat1792
catcher1829
fishera1862
fishing-craft1875
1699 W. Dampier Voy. & Descr. ii. i. 31 If they are not provided with Hooks, Lines or Harpoons or any other Fishing-Craft.
1875 W. McIlwraith Guide Wigtownshire 91 Stranraer was the rendezvous of the..fishing craft.
fishing expedition n.
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the mind > attention and judgement > enquiry > interrogation > [noun] > sounding out
sound1584
fishing expedition1961
sounding1969
1961 E. S. Gardner Case of Bigamous Spouse (1967) xv. 203 I am not going to permit counsel to go on a fishing expedition.
1966 A. Sachs Jail Diary iii. 38 They..seemed to be on a fishing expedition.
fishing-gear n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > [noun]
tackle1398
tewc1440
craft1521
tackling1548
fishing-tackle1703
box swivel1725
fishing-gear1839
rig1865
1839 Knickerbocker May 406 To throw by my fishing gear, and sit upon rocks.
1863 C. Lyell Geol. Evid. Antiq. Man 19 The Swiss archæologist has found abundant evidence of fishing-gear.
fishing-ground n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [noun] > fishing-ground
fishinga1599
piscarya1625
fishing-ground1641
fishery1699
fish-range1699
mark1965
1641 in J. Knox View Brit. Empire (1785) II. 397 They are to..make them [nets]..in a readinesse against they come to the fishing grounds.
fishing-hook n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > hook > [noun]
angleeOE
hookc950
angle-hooka1382
fish-hooka1387
preen1469
angling hook1549
fishing-hook1725
1725 D. Defoe New Voy. round World ii. 199 They had neither Fishing-hook or Nets.
1738 G. Smith tr. Laboratory v. 129 Your small fishing Hooks.
fishing-house n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [noun] > fisherman's house
fisher's folly1638
fishing-house1676
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > dwelling place or abode > a dwelling > a house > types of house > [noun] > houses occupied by specific types of people
grass house1557
woman-house1566
fishing-house1676
family house1727
henhouse1785
women-house1792
bachelor('s) hall1841
bachelor-apartment1857
garçonnière1927
bachelor1968
bachelorette1973
pit house1974
squat1975
1676 C. Cotton Compl. Angler i. 9 I have lately built a little Fishing House upon it [the river], dedicated to Anglers.
1751 S. Whatley England's Gazetteer at Selsey This peninsula has several fishing-houses towards the shore.
fishing-hutch n.
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the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > fish-trap > [noun]
fish-trap1837
fishing box1861
fishing-hutch1868
1868 Law Rep.: Queen's Bench 3 289 The water..is used to supply the mill..and also a fishing-hutch or trap.
fishing-light n.
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the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > other fishing equipment > [noun] > fishing light
lowe1814
fishing-light1832
jacklight1841
pit lamp1860
1832 T. W. Magrath Let. Jan. in T. Radcliff Lett. f. Upper Canada (1833) xiii. 215 At night the shore was brilliant with the fishing lights in the canoes.
1845 C. M. Kirkland Western Clearings 120 Nobody broke his windows or pulled the shingles off his roof to make fishing-lights or quail-traps.
fishing-limit n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [noun] > fishing-ground > station for taking fish > quotas
fishing-limit1963
1963 Times 14 Jan. 6/7 The Anglo-Danish fishing-limit compromise.
fishing-line n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > fishing-line > [noun]
linec1374
fishing-line1466
string1585
thread1602
fish-line1639
taum1670
1466 in Manners & Househ. Expenses Eng. (1841) 212 My mastyr paid hym for v. fyshenge lynes.
1865 J. Lubbock Prehist. Times xi. 375 Their fishing-lines were made of the bark of the Erowa.
fishing-net n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > net > [noun]
fishing-net1530
yarn1535
fisher-net1601
1530 in F. W. Weaver Wells Wills (1890) 145 A vowlyng nett and a ffyshing nett.
1699 W. Dampier Voy. & Descr. ii. iv. 105 He would soon destroy their Canoas and Fishing-Nets.
1864 Ld. Tennyson Enoch Arden in Enoch Arden, etc. 2 Enoch Arden..play'd Among..swarthy fishing-nets..and boats updrawn.
fishing-party n.
ΚΠ
1765 Jrnl. French Traveller 20 June in Amer. Hist. Rev. (1922) 27 72 We went to a fishing party out in the Bay.
1838 C. Gilman Recoll. Southern Matron xxvi. 176 Fishing parties, and the chase soon occupied his leisure moments.
1849 F. Parkman Calif. & Oregon Trail 35 She sat down and entertained us..with anecdotes of fishing-parties.
fishing-pen n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > fish-keeping, farming, or breeding > [noun] > fish-weir or -garth
weir839
fish-weirc1000
yair1178
fishgarth1454
eel-bed1483
water frith1584
frith1602
garth1609
fish-lock1661
crawl1682
fish-yard1685
fishing-pen1791
eelery1854
fishing-weir1870
crib1873
ark1883
kiddle1891
1791 W. Jessop Rep. Navigation Thames 20 The Sills of the old Lock and Fishing Pen may be raised 18 Inches.
fishing-port n.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > district in relation to human occupation > town as opposed to country > town > [noun] > fishing-town
fisher-towna1552
fishing-town1699
fishing-port1897
1897 R. Kipling Captains Courageous x, in McClure's Mag. May 615/1 Some sort of poem about a fishing-port called Brixham.
1930 Daily Express 8 Sept. 9/5 He reached Porthleven, a fishing port in Mount's Bay, at ten o'clock on Tuesday morning.
fishing rights n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [noun] > rights
several fishery1426
piscary1475
piscage1610
rod1898
fishing rights1936
society > law > legal right > rights to do or use something > [noun] > hunting or fishing rights
several fishery1426
piscary1475
(free) warren1485
fishing1495
chasea1500
fugationc1503
piscage1610
fishery1703
shooting1848
shoot1861
rod1898
fishing rights1936
1936 Discovery May 139/2 The rivers and the fishing rights belong to the riparian owners.
fishing-season n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [noun] > season
fishing-season1699
1699 W. Dampier Voy. & Descr. ii. i. 12 Where the Indian Fishers..lye in the Fishing-Seasons.
fishing-ship n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > fishing vessel > [noun]
fisher-boatc1440
fish-craft1480
fisherman1604
fisher-ship1614
fish-ship1676
fishing-boat1732
fishing-ship1785
fish-boat1792
catcher1829
fishera1862
fishing-craft1875
1785 J. Knox View Brit. Empire (ed. 3) I. 319 Several fishing-ships from Kinsale take abundance of ling every year.
fishing-smack n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > fishing vessel > [noun] > other types of fishing vessel
spindlers-boat1243
manfare1326
stall boat1328
dogger1338
hackboat1344
coble1493
peter-boat1540
monger1558
trimboat1558
shotter1580
crab-skuit1614
fly-boat1614
cantera1642
dogger-boat1646
cag1666
yawl1670
barca-longa1681
hogboat1784
fishing-smack1785
hooker1801
hatch-boat1828
pinkie1840
fishing-bark1841
pookhaun1851
garookuh1855
jigger1860
fisher-bark1862
fisher-keel1870
Norwegian1872
scaf1877
mule coble1883
mule1884
Zulu1884
novy1885
tosher1885
skipjack1887
fleeter1888
fishing-float1893
rodney1895
mutton-ham boat1899
nobby1899
sinagot1927
sport fisherman1937
sport fisher1940
ski-boat1964
belly boat1976
1785 J. Knox View Brit. Empire (ed. 3) I. 302 Fishing-smacks from Harwich.
1876 J. Saunders Lion in Path vii The tiny fleet of fishing-smacks were all hauled up together on the shingle.
fishing-spear n. U.S.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > spear > [noun]
pricka1350
garfanglec1440
wawsper1472
spear1551
waster1580
fizgig1589
visgee1593
fish-spear1611
glaive1640
fish-giga1642
gaff1656
gig1705
lance1728
sticker1772
graina1818
picaroon1837
pickpole1837
fishing-spear1840
lily-iron1852
gambeering iron1883
mackerel gaff1883
1840 C. F. Hoffman Greyslaer i. xi. 122 The torches..enable them..to approach sufficiently near to destroy him with their fishing spears.
fishing-station n. U.S.
ΚΠ
1836 Southern Literary Messenger 2 747 He..under pretence of making inquiries at a small fishing station, sailed down the river alone.
1845 J. C. Frémont Exped. 186 A favorite fishing station among the Indians.
fishing-tackle n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > [noun]
tackle1398
tewc1440
craft1521
tackling1548
fishing-tackle1703
box swivel1725
fishing-gear1839
rig1865
1703 London Gaz. No. 3935/4 A Vellum Pocket-Book, with some Fishing-Tackle in it.
1813 Examiner 15 Feb. 102/1 B. George..fishing-tackle-maker.
fishing-town n.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > district in relation to human occupation > town as opposed to country > town > [noun] > fishing-town
fisher-towna1552
fishing-town1699
fishing-port1897
1699 in J. A. Picton City of Liverpool: Select. Munic. Rec. (1883) I. 325 It was formerly a small fishing-town.
fishing-trade n.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > specific types of trade > [noun] > trade in provisions > in fish or game
fishing-trade1662
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [noun] > fishing establishment > fishing business
fishing-trade1662
fishery1677
1662 J. Smith England's Improvem. Reviv'd (1670) 258 The Fishing-Trade, being in our own Seas, and on our own ground.
fishing trip n.
ΚΠ
1909 ‘O. Henry’ Roads of Destiny ii. 36 Mr. Robert mentioned his intended fishing-trip.
1943 J. S. Huxley TVA vii. 51 About a million and a half individual fishing trips..were made on the new TVA lakes.
fishing-village n.
ΘΚΠ
society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > district in relation to human occupation > town as opposed to country > village > [noun] > (small) fishing village
fishing-village1699
outport1810
gunk-hole1908
1699 W. Dampier Voy. & Descr. ii. vi. 124 At this Opening is a small Fishing Village.
fishing-weir n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > fish-keeping, farming, or breeding > [noun] > fish-weir or -garth
weir839
fish-weirc1000
yair1178
fishgarth1454
eel-bed1483
water frith1584
frith1602
garth1609
fish-lock1661
crawl1682
fish-yard1685
fishing-pen1791
eelery1854
fishing-weir1870
crib1873
ark1883
kiddle1891
1870 Law Rep.: Common Pleas Div. 5 659 A fishing-weir..of solid masonry.
fishing-worm n.
ΚΠ
1884 ‘M. Twain’ Adventures Huckleberry Finn xxxvii. 317 Curled him up like a fishing-worm.
C2.
Thesaurus »
Categories »
fishing admiral n. see admiral n. 2c.
fishing-breeze n. one favourable for fishing.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > weather and the atmosphere > weather > wind > [noun] > wind of the kind when fish are caught
mackerel gale1577
mackerel breeze1751
fishing-breeze1888
1888 E. J. Mather Nor'ard of Dogger 279 There has been a ‘smart fishing-breeze’ during the night, resulting in a heavy catch.
fishing-crib n. (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > other fishing equipment > [noun] > boats or parts of
fishing-crib1886
1886 C. Adams in Longman's Mag. VII. 652 Owing to the increase of fixed engines, called fishing-cribs.
fishing-flake n. = fish-flake n. at fish n.1 Compounds 2b.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > food manufacture and preparation > preparation for table or cooking > preparation of seafood > [noun] > drying frame or stick
stage1535
hake1609
flake1623
fish-flake1767
fishing-flake1861
fish stick1875
1861 L. L. Noble After Icebergs 20 We are glad to jump ashore at Mrs. Bridget Kennedy's fishing-flake.
fishing-float n. (see quots.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > float > [noun]
floata1450
quilla1609
swimmera1609
fishing-float1728
trimmer1799
bobber1881
waggler1975
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > fishing vessel > [noun] > other types of fishing vessel
spindlers-boat1243
manfare1326
stall boat1328
dogger1338
hackboat1344
coble1493
peter-boat1540
monger1558
trimboat1558
shotter1580
crab-skuit1614
fly-boat1614
cantera1642
dogger-boat1646
cag1666
yawl1670
barca-longa1681
hogboat1784
fishing-smack1785
hooker1801
hatch-boat1828
pinkie1840
fishing-bark1841
pookhaun1851
garookuh1855
jigger1860
fisher-bark1862
fisher-keel1870
Norwegian1872
scaf1877
mule coble1883
mule1884
Zulu1884
novy1885
tosher1885
skipjack1887
fleeter1888
fishing-float1893
rodney1895
mutton-ham boat1899
nobby1899
sinagot1927
sport fisherman1937
sport fisher1940
ski-boat1964
belly boat1976
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. at Fishing Fishing Floats, are little Appendages to the Line, serving to keep the Hook and Bait suspended at the proper Depth.
1893 Standard Dict. Fishing-float, [U.S.], a scow used in seine-fishing, from which an apron is let down to the bed of the river for the more convenient handling of the seine.
fishing-plummet n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1872 Amer. Naturalist 6 225 Girdled, globular or oval pebbles, which have been designated ‘fishing-plummets’, are very abundant.
fishing-pole n. a pole used as a fishing-rod.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > rod > [noun]
angle-rodc1450
rodc1450
angling rod1510
gada1535
fishing-rod1552
angling wand1565
wand1565
pole1577
fishing-pole1791
fish pole1834
fishing-wand1889
1791 T. B. Hazard Diary 12 Sept. (1930) 127/1 I broke my Fishing Pole Cought 4 Pickrel 3 Eeels and 6 Trout.
1873 T. B. Aldrich Marjorie Daw 75 He rigged himself up a fishing-pole.
1931 J. Buchan Blanket of Dark 52 He was..able to spend long days..on the meres with his fishing pole.
1946 H. S. Pearson Countryman's Cookbook 78 Our hooks and lines were ready, and we had made several fishing poles from slender saplings during the winter.
fishing-room n. (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > place for storing food > [noun] > for fish
fishing-rooma1728
the world > food and drink > food > food manufacture and preparation > equipment for food preparation > cooking establishment or kitchen > [noun] > place where food is preserved
powdering house1513
skeo1602
smoke-loft1657
salting-house?c1682
meat house1710
pickle-yard1722
fishing-rooma1728
salting-room1805
frigorifico1917
a1728 in J. Reeves Hist. Newfoundland (1793) ii. 76 In such case should the ships fishing rooms of that harbour be taken up before he arrives.
1732 E. Falkingham Let. 4 Oct. in Cal. State Papers: Amer. & W. Indies (1939) 223 And by that means stake out the very best of the antient fishing room and by that pretence claim a right.
1879 E. W. H. Holdsworth in Encycl. Brit. IX. 266 ‘Fishing rooms’ or portions of the shore set apart for the curing and storing of fish.
fishing tool n. (see quot. 1963).
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > mining equipment > [noun] > tool for extracting objects from borehole
wimble1693
fishing tool1886
1886 Cent. Mag. July 330/1 The ‘fishing tools’..come into important service when the drilling apparatus or the rope breaks in the well.
1963 Gloss. Mining Terms (B.S.I.) iii. 10 Fishing tools or tackle, tools used to recover objects lost or stuck down a borehole.
fishing-tube n. (see quot.).
ΚΠ
1874 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. I. 873/2 Fishing-tube (Microscopy), an open-ended glass tube for selecting a microscopic object in a fluid.
fishing-wand n. Scottish = fishing-rod n.
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the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > rod > [noun]
angle-rodc1450
rodc1450
angling rod1510
gada1535
fishing-rod1552
angling wand1565
wand1565
pole1577
fishing-pole1791
fish pole1834
fishing-wand1889
1889 J. M. Barrie Window in Thrums xi. 96 I was in the garden putting some rings on a fishing-wand.
fishing warden n. = fish-warden n. at fish n.1 Compounds 2b.
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1868 Game Laws New Hampshire 13 Any town in this state..may, at its annual meeting, choose one or more fishing wardens.
Draft additions 1993
The action of attempting to retrieve objects accidentally left or dropped in an oil well. Cf. fish n.4 Additions c, fish v.1 Additions b. Originally U.S.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > drilling for oil or gas > [adjective] > retrieving objects in well
fishing1886
society > occupation and work > industry > drilling for oil or gas > [noun] > object hindering further drilling > act of retrieving
fishing1886
1886 [see fishing tool n. at Compounds 2].
1916 R. H. Johnson & L. G. Huntley Princ. Oil & Gas Production xii. 129 The contractor..guarantees the completion of the hole; any ‘fishing’ expenses thus fall entirely upon the contractor.
1920 Bull. U.S. Bureau of Mines No. 182. 8 Success in ‘fishing’ primarily depends upon a proper knowledge of tool running.
1956 Petroleum Engineer XXVIII. B54/2 This information will be helpful while fishing.
1978 Oil & Gas Jrnl. 30 Jan. 98/1 Fishing is common, and lost circulation has occurred in several deep tests.
1985 New Yorker 22 Apr. 102/3 Sipperly figured out that fishing meant retrieving drilling equipment that had been inadvertently left in a well bore.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1896; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
fishingn.2
The action of strengthening or supporting with a fish; see fish n.2 fishing-key, a kind of fish-plate.
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society > occupation and work > industry > working with tools or equipment > fastening > [noun] > with other specific fastenings
chaininga1387
hookingc1430
clasping1460
spanning1527
buckling1625
wedging1678
fishing1798
screw-bolting1831
slinging1833
stapling1898
society > travel > rail travel > railway system or organization > [noun] > track > parts and fittings of rails
string-piece1789
carriage1816
chair1816
pedestal1816
surface plate1822
web1835
frog1837
switch-bar1837
snake-head1845
fish1847
fish-joint1849
plate nail1849
fishing-key1852
fish-plate1855
joint-chair1856
rail chair1864
railhead1868
lead1871
fish-bar1872
splice-piece1875
fish-plating1881
splice-jointa1884
splice-bar1894
1798 Ld. Nelson in Dispatches & Lett. (1845) III. 132 The..two masts, by good fishing will hold fast.
1837 F. Marryat Snarleyyow (ed. 2) I. xii. 149 I wish I had the fishing of your back that is so bent.
1852 Bruff Specif. Patent 14,096 2 Into this metal clip, which I term a fishing key, the ends of each rail at its junction with the preceding or succeeding rail are received.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1896; most recently modified version published online June 2019).
fishingadj.
/ˈfɪʃɪŋ/ That fishes.
1. Of an animal: That catches fish. (The names of such animals are sometimes hyphenated.) fishing frog, a fish: = angler n.2 3 fishing eagle, fishing hawk, fishing owl = fish-eagle n., fish-hawk n., fish-owl n. at fish n.1 Compounds 2b.
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the world > animals > by eating habits > [adjective] > carnivorous > that catches fish
fishing1694
the world > animals > birds > order Falconiformes (falcons, etc.) > [noun] > family Pandionidae (osprey)
pygarga1398
ospreyc1450
ospring1530
water eagle1562
bone-breaker1598
ospringer?1611
ossifrage1658
fish-eagle1678
fishing hawk1694
fishing eaglea1792
eagle fisher1801
fish-hawk1808
break-bones1838
the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fisher > [adjective] > that catches fish (of animal)
fishing1694
the world > animals > birds > order Strigiformes or owl > [noun] > family Strigidae > genus Ketupa (fish-owl)
fish-owl1867
fishing owl1934
1694 Philos. Trans. 1693 (Royal Soc.) 17 989 The Fishing Hauk is an absolute Species of a Kings-fisher.
1769 T. Pennant Brit. Zool. (new ed.) III. iv. 94 The fishing frog grows to a large size.
1785 T. Jefferson Notes Virginia vi. 125 Accipiter piscatorius..Fishing hawk.
a1792 S. Hearne Journey from Prince of Wales's Fort (1795) x. 398 Eagles of several sorts are found in the country bordering on Hudson's Bay during the Summer; but none, except the common brown Fishing Eagle, ever frequent the Northern parts.
1835 R. M. Bird Hawks of Hawk-hollow I. vi. 85 They are no true fishing-hawks, after all.
1835 R. M. Bird Hawks of Hawk-hollow I. vii. 94 The Solitude..[was] broken by..the plaintive scream of the fishing eagles.
1883 Official Catal. Internat. Fisheries Exhib. (ed. 4) 153 The Fishing cat..is very common in Lower Bengal about Calcutta.
1934 Jrnl. Royal Aeronaut. Soc. 38 837 This is the fishing owl of tropical Asia, which goes by the Latin name of Ketupa Flovipes.
1953 G. Durrell Overloaded Ark xiii. 220 The Fishing-Eagles, their black-and-white livery standing out..and their canary-yellow beaks and feet bright in the sun.
2. Of an accusation, inquiry, etc.: Preferred or put forward in order to elicit information which cannot be gained directly.
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the mind > attention and judgement > enquiry > interrogation > [adjective] > sounding out
expiscatory1829
fishing1831
1831 T. L. Peacock Crotchet Castle xv He again threw out two or three fishing questions.
1844 Ld. Brougham Albert Lunel I. ii. 37 So she framed what our lawyers call her fishing question.
1863 H. G. Wilson Speech before Privy Council 3 Merely colourable and fishing Articles of accusation.
Derivatives
ˈfishingly adv.
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the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > [adverb]
piscatorially1824
fishingly1837
the mind > attention and judgement > enquiry > interrogation > [adverb] > in order to sound out
fishingly1837
1837 J. G. Lockhart Mem. Life Scott (1839) VIII. 23 One of the College librarians yesterday told Sir W., fishingly, ‘I have been so busy that I have not yet read your Redgauntlet’.
1893 Field 27 May 771/1 The onlooker who is not fishingly inclined.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1896; most recently modified version published online June 2020).
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n.11297
n.21798
adj.1694