hand over hand

English edit

hand over hand (not comparable)

(nautical) by passing the hands alternately one before or above the other, especially with rope
- 1849, Herman Melville, “chapter 50”, in Redburn: His First Voyage. […], 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC:
  Max went up the rigging hand over hand, and brought his red head with a bump against the base of Harry’s back.
rapidly
- 1824, Washington Irving, The Devil and Tom Walker:
  In this way he made money hand over hand; became a rich and mighty man, and exalted his cocked hat upon change.
- 1890, William Dean Howells, A Hazard of New Fortunes, chapter 11:
  He was making money, hand over hand, then; and he never stopped speculating and improving till he'd scraped together three or four hundred thousand dollars