yo-heave-ho

[ yoh-heev-hoh ]

interjection

(a chant formerly shouted by sailors to maintain a steady rhythm when hauling something together.)

Origin of yo-heave-ho

First recorded in 1795–1805

Words Nearby yo-heave-ho

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use yo-heave-ho in a sentence

The men did “hold on” most powerfully; they did more, they hauled upon the rope, hand over hand, to a “yo-heave-ho!”
The Floating Light of the Goodwin Sands | R.M. Ballantyne
"nautical," however, the lack of the "yo-heave-ho" touch in the Yankee sailor-man is by no means in his disfavour.
Stories of the Ships | Lewis R. Freeman
But the next instant we were ready for him, and began to haul in with a will and a "yo-heave-ho!"
Barney Blake, The Boy Privateer | Herrick Johnstone

British Dictionary definitions for yo-heave-ho

yo-heave-ho

/ (ˌjəʊhiːvˈhəʊ) /

interjection

a cry formerly used by sailors while pulling or lifting together in rhythm

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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