on the hook

prepositional phrase

Of an animal, slaughtered for food.

“on the hook for”

Meanings

prepositional phrase
  1. literallyOf an animal, slaughtered for food.

    Antonyms: on the hoof

  2. idiomaticinformalIn debt; obligated to pay or provide; liable; responsible or blamed.

    on the hook for

    5 more examples

    Well, you're off the hook for next Tuesday's meeting, but you're still on the hook for this Friday's deadline.

    For now, at least, Mr. Wedell, who is a vice president at the Robinson-Humphrey Company, a subsidiary of Shearson Lehman, is still on the hook for unsettled claims.

    1991 October 27, Barbara Presley Noble, “Making a Difference: Lloyd's 'Indentured Servant'”, in New York Times, retrieved 15 Jun 2011

    Yes, incumbents of both parties—especially those incumbents facing tough re-election campaigns—don't want to be on the hook for this vote.

    2008 September 29, “Washington to Wall Street: Drop Dead”, in Newsweek, retrieved 15 Jun 2011

    Could taxpayers really be on the hook for UAW pensions? Yes.

    2010 April 15, Joseph R. Szczesny, “GM's Pension: A Ticking Time Bomb for Taxpayers?”, in Time

    Cameron was getting pressure from the studio to try and have something that would be an additional powerful marketing tool. And because the studio was on the hook for this picture, for what they’d spent they were looking for every marketing opportunity that they could get.

    2017 May 18, Mickey Rapkin, “The Oral History of Celine Dion’s ‘My Heart Will Go On’: Controversies, Doubts & ‘Belly Pains’ In the Studio”, in billboard.com

    Antonyms: off the hook

Synonyms & antonyms

prepositional phraseOf an animal, slaughtered for food.

Opposite

prepositional phraseIn debt; obligated to pay or provide; liable; responsible or blamed.

Opposite

More synonyms by meaning

adjectivecaught in a difficult or dangerous situation

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Cite this entry
APA

on the hook. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20hook

MLA

“on the hook.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20hook. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “on the hook,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20hook.

Source: on the hook on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.