Idiom
Off the hook
If you are off the hook, you are no longer in trouble or no longer responsible for something you were worried about.
How people use it
The common patterns are "let someone off the hook" and "get off the hook": "The teacher let us off the hook for the late homework." It suggests relief, usually at escaping blame or a duty. Two other uses are worth knowing. A phone "ringing off the hook" is ringing constantly, from old phones whose receiver hung on a hook. And in 1990s American slang, a party or show that was "off the hook" was wild and excellent, though that use now sounds dated.
Also said: let someone off the hook, get off the hook, ringing off the hook.
Examples
- My sister offered to cook dinner, so I was off the hook for the night.
- The manager let Ben off the hook after he explained why the report was late.
- Since the storm canceled the game, the team is off the hook for Saturday practice.
Where it comes from
The main sense most likely comes from fishing: a fish that wriggles free of the hook gets away. The phrase was used this way in American English by the 1800s. The phone senses come from early telephones, whose receivers rested on a hook. Taking it "off the hook" meant nobody could call in, and a phone that "rings off the hook" rings so much it seems ready to jump off.
Check yourself
1. Your coworker says, "You're off the hook for the meeting." What does she mean?
Answer: You no longer have to go. Being off the hook means you are freed from a duty or from blame.
2. What does it mean if a store's phone is ringing off the hook?
Answer: Lots of people keep calling. Ringing off the hook means the phone rings again and again because many people are calling.
Similar idioms
Word game fan? See every word hiding in HOOK.