This article is about the knot. For the cartoon sailor, see Half Hitch (comic strip).
Half hitch
A half hitch tied around a pole
Category
Hitch
Origin
Ancient
Related
Two half-hitches, Clove hitch, Munter hitch, single hitch
Releasing
Non-jamming
Typical use
As part of other knots
ABoK
#50, #1662, #1663, #1026, #1717, #1780
The half hitch is a simple hitch knot, where the working end of a line is brought over and under the standing part. Insecure on its own, it is a valuable component of a wide variety of useful and reliable hitches, bends, and knots.
The half hitch is tied with one end of a rope which is passed around an object and secured to its own standing part with a single hitch.
— The Ashley Book of Knots[1]: 14
Securing an additional single hitch to the rope's standing part produces the related knot two half-hitches.[1]: 283 Alternatively, a half hitch may be made secure on its own by placing the final crossing opposite to the turn around the working end. This locks the end in place, and holds fast as long as the hitch is loaded by a steady pull.[1]: 290 A half hitch in this configuration is sometimes used to tie strings to the bridge of a classical guitar.
Another instance where a half hitch stands on its own without additional embellishment is when added to a timber hitch to help stabilize a load in the direction of pull. A timber hitch is tied on the far end of the load to bind it securely and a half hitch made at the forward end to serve as a guide for the rope. In this instance, the half hitch combined with a timber hitch is known as a killick hitch or kelleg hitch.[2]
The knot is attractive to the eye and so is used decoratively for French whipping which is also known as half hitch whipping.[3]
^ abcAshley, Clifford W. (1944). The Ashley Book of Knots, Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-04025-3.
The halfhitch is a simple hitch knot, where the working end of a line is brought over and under the standing part. Insecure on its own, it is a valuable...
buntline hitch, when bent to a yard, makes a more secure knot than two halfhitches, but is more liable to jam. It differs from two halfhitches in that...
The clove hitch is an ancient type of knot, made of two successive single hitches: 283 tied around an object. It is most effectively used to secure a...
items, the addition of a half-hitch in front of the timber hitch creates a timber hitch and a halfhitch, or known as a killick hitch when at sea. A killick...
forms a halfhitch and stays there if the free end of the rope is pulled taut. Many people draw the small loop over facing the wrong way at least half of the...
Complete with a halfhitch, moving around the object in the opposite direction as the first turns, as for a cow hitch. Dress by snugging the hitch around the...
simple noose, overhand loop, angler's loop, reef knot, fisherman's knot, halfhitch, and water knot. The overhand knot is a stopper, especially when used...
loops Chinese button knot – a decorative knot Cleat hitch Clove hitch – two successive half-hitches around an object Common whipping – series of knots...
HalfHitch as a newspaper comic. The strip was published under Ketcham's name, although it was drawn and written by others. The new version of Half Hitch...
To climbers, this hitch is also known as HMS, the abbreviation for the German term Halbmastwurfsicherung, meaning half clove hitch belay. This technique...
from the clove hitch increases the security of this knot. 1. Make a halfhitch 2. Complete the clove hitch 3. Through the clove hitch 4. Around standing...
The blackwall hitch is a temporary means of attaching a rope to a hook. Made of a simple halfhitch over the hook, it will only hold when subjected to...
being tied with a halfhitch, folding each of the exposed ends into a loop (bight) and joining the loops with a second halfhitch. The size of the loops...
Six Knot Challenge, along with the clove hitch, bowline, reef knot (square knot), round turn and two half-hitches, and sheepshank. The sheet bend is related...
"rolling hitch" was called the "Magnus hitch" or "Magner's hitch", and the name "rolling hitch" referred to two round turns and two half-hitches. In 1841...
round turn and two halfhitches except that the first halfhitch is passed under the turn. In many everyday uses, the finishing half-hitch need not be made;...
the addition of a half-hitch in front of the timber hitch creates a timber hitch and a halfhitch,: 23 known as a killick hitch: 32 when at sea. A killick...
inverted halfhitch. A dead turn We cross by making an eight Prepare the reverse halfhitch The finished knot List of knots Cleat Clove hitch Ashley, Clifford...
formed by a pattern of rings and chains formed from a series of cow hitch or half-hitch knots, called double stitches, over a core thread. Gaps can be left...
are various styles and patterns, but most are based on the same simple half-hitch knot. They represent a friendship that is strong and everlasting. The...