Heave-Ho
/ˌhiːvˈhoʊ/noun
A shouted rhythmic call used to coordinate lifting or hauling, or an expression of effort and dismissal.
Did you know?The phrase is an old sailors’ and laborers’ hauling cry, and its power comes from rhythm: repeated call-and-response words were used to time collective effort long before modern machines.
Etymological Timeline
Middle English
English
heven
“to lift, raise, or move upward”
Old English
English
hebban
“to raise, lift up”
Old Norse
Old Norse
hefja
“to raise, lift”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*habjaną
“to lift, raise”
Modern English
English
heave-ho
“a rhythmic hauling cry or exclamation of effort”