Telephone hook

A telephone hook or switchhook is the cradle where a telephone handset resides. It takes its name from old wooden wall telephones, where the mouthpiece was usually mounted on the telephone box and the receiver was separate, on a cable. When the telephone was not in use, the receiver was hung on a spring-loaded hook on the side of the box; its weight would cause the hook to swing down and open an electrical contact, disconnecting the telephone from the line. When the handset is on the cradle, the telephone is said to be "on-hook", or ready for a call. When the handset is off the cradle, the telephone is said to be "off-hook", or unable to receive any (further) calls.

Example usage

"I tried calling you all day, but your phone must have been off the hook, because all I got was a busy signal."

Additional usage

A phone receiving many calls in rapid succession can be said to be "ringing off the hook". (Often cartoons will show a telephone handset literally bouncing above the ringing base unit.) This most likely led to the present use of "off the hook" as a synonym for "crazy" or "exciting".

"Off the hook", meaning "freed from responsibility or culpability" is not related to the telephone, but most likely derives from the image of a worm dislodging itself from a fishing hook."Off the Hook"" is sometimes used as slang, when some thing was really good, or some one had a good time

Example usage

"Last night was off the hook" as if they were saying "last night was really awesome"

ee also

*Hook flash
*Off The Hook: radio show