fishing

fishing

fish·ing   [ˈfɪʃɪŋ]    [ˈfɪʃɪŋ]  noun uncountable

the sport or business of catching fish

• They often go fishing.

• deep-sea fishing

• a fishing boat

• fishing grounds

• We enjoyed a day's fishing by the river.

 

Culture:

field sports [field sports fishing]

The main field sports are hunting, shooting and fishing. They are often also called blood sports because they involve killing animals. In Britain all three sports were traditionally associated with the upper classes, although today they all, especially fishing, attract a much wider group of people.

Fox-hunting, usually called just ‘hunting’ in Britain, was until recently the most common form of hunting. A pack of specially trained dogs (called foxhounds) chase after and kill a fox while a group of people follow on horseback, traditionally wearing pink (= red jackets) and blowing horns. Fox-hunting was once a popular subject for painting and some English country pubs display sets of prints. Fox-hunting, together with stag-hunting (= the hunting of male deer), hare coursing, in which greyhounds chase after a hare (= a type of rabbit) are now illegal, as are other blood sports such as badger-baiting and cockfighting.

The ban on hunting was an important political issue in Britain. Many people believe hunting is cruel and should be stopped, but some people living in the country see the ban as an attack on their way of life. The ban finally came into effect in 2005. Organizations opposed to hunting with dogs include the League Against Cruel Sports and the RSPCA ( Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). The main organization in favour is the Countryside Alliance.

Shooting game birds, such as pheasant and grouse, is a sport mainly of the upper and middle classes. Grouse shooting begins each year on 12 August, the Glorious Twelfth, and takes place mainly in Scotland. The hunters often employ beaters to drive the birds towards their guns. Those who object to shooting at live birds for sport do clay pigeon shooting (= shooting at clay discs fired into the air).

Fishing, often called angling, is a very popular sport and there are many angling clubs. Three main types of angling take place: fly-fishing, coarse fishing and sea fishing. Fly-fishing, which is expensive, is fishing for salmon, trout and other fish in fast-flowing rivers, using specially disguised hooks. Coarse fishing in rivers and lakes for fish other than salmon and trout, most of which are thrown back after being caught, is more widely popular. On the coast people may fish with a rod and line from a boat or from the shore.

The US probably has more hunting organizations than any other country. This is mainly because of two strong traditions: the Constitution gives all Americans the right to own guns, and Americans have always hunted animals for food. The first Europeans who settled America hunted deer, bear, foxes, turkeys and ducks to survive, and many Americans still eat what they shoot. For these reasons, hunting is a sport for all classes and many people own hunting rifles. Americans do not use the name field sports. Instead they say outdoor sports or, because that can include camping, walking and boating, simply hunting and fishing. Bird hunting is often used instead of shooting, because that can also mean shooting at targets made of wood.

Many other Americans are against hunting, but animal rights groups have little power against organizations like the National Rifle Association, which has more than 4 million members, and other politically active groups that support hunting and fishing. Conservation organizations like the Colorado Wildlife Coalition also use their influence to protect the rights of people to hunt and fish.

The first US hunting club, the Gloucester Fox Hunting Club, was established in 1766 in Philadelphia. Fox-hunting now only takes place in a few eastern states where it is associated with the upper class and has little opposition. Americans generally hunt deer, elk, bear, antelope, mountain lion, raccoon and wild birds. The US Fish and Wildlife Service is in charge of fishing and hunting laws. States have their own wildlife departments and sometimes both national and state permission is needed to hunt.

Fishing is the most popular outdoor sport in America. Freshwater (= river) fish caught in the US include trout, bass and salmon. Saltwater (= sea) fish include flounder, mackerel, shark, snapper and tuna.

 

Example Bank:

• Ecuador announced a ban on fishing for shrimp.

• Fishing rights are held by the local angling club.

• He goes fishing every weekend.

• Just below that bridge is a good fishing spot.

• One of his hobbies was fly-fishing.

• She has been big game fishing off the coast of Kenya.

• The two countries have signed a new fishing agreement.

• This stretch of the river is renowned for its good fishing.

• You need a fishing licence to fish in the lake.

• controls on fishing activity

• the rich fishing grounds off the coast of Namibia

 

x

fish

fish [fish fishes fished fishing] noun, verb   [fɪʃ]    [fɪʃ]

noun (pl. fish or fishes) Fish is the usual plural form. The older form, fishes, can be used to refer to different kinds of fish.

1. countable a creature that lives in water, breathes through gills, and uses fins and a tail for swimming

• They caught several fish.

• tropical/marine/freshwater fish

• shoals (= groups) of fish

• a fish tank/pond

• There are about 30 000 species of fish in the world.

• The list of endangered species includes nearly 600 fishes.

• Fish stocks in the Baltic are in decline.

• In the pool she could see little silvery fish darting around.

see also  coarse fish, flatfish, sea fish, shellfish, wet fish

2. uncountable the flesh of fish eaten as food

• frozen/smoked/fresh fish

• fish pie

• The chef's fish dishes are his speciality.

• Fish forms the main part of their diet.

more at a big fish (in a small pond) at  big  adj., a cold fish at  cold  adj., a different kettle of fish at  different, drink like a fish at  drink  v., be like shooting fish in a barrel at  shoot  v.

 

Word Origin:

Old English fisc (as a noun denoting any animal living exclusively in water), fiscian (verb), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch vis, vissen and German Fisch, fischen.

 

Collocations:

The living world

Animals

animals mate/breed/reproduce/feed (on sth)

fish/amphibians swim/spawn (= lay eggs)

birds fly/migrate/nest/sing

insects crawl/fly/bite/sting

insects/bees/locusts swarm

bees collect/gather nectar/pollen

spiders spin/weave a web

snakes/lizards shed their skins

bears/hedgehogs/frogs hibernate

insect larvae grow/develop/pupate

an egg/a chick/a larva hatches

attract/find/choose a mate

produce/release eggs/sperm

lay/fertilize/incubate/hatch eggs

inhabit a forest/a reef/the coast

mark/enter/defend (a) territory

stalk/hunt/capture/catch/kill prey

Plants and fungi

trees/plants grow/bloom/blossom/flower

a seed germinates/sprouts

leaves/buds/roots/shoots appear/develop/form

flower buds swell/open

a fungus grows/spreads/colonizes sth

pollinate/fertilize a flower/plant

produce/release/spread/disperse pollen/seeds/spores

produce/bear fruit

develop/grow/form roots/shoots/leaves

provide/supply/absorb/extract/release nutrients

perform/increase/reduce photosynthesis

Bacteria and viruses

bacteria/microbes/viruses grow/spread/multiply

bacteria/microbes live/thrive in/on sth

bacteria/microbes/viruses evolve/colonize sth/cause disease

bacteria break sth down/convert sth (into sth)

a virus enters/invades sth/the body

a virus mutates/evolves/replicates (itself)

be infected with/contaminated with/exposed to a new strain of a virus/drug-resistant bacteria

contain/carry/harbour (especially US) harbor bacteria/a virus

kill/destroy/eliminate harmful/deadly bacteria

 

Example Bank:

• He landed a big fish.

• He landed one very big fish.

• I cleaned and filleted the fish.

• Remove the skin and flake the cooked fish.

• The fish aren't biting today.

• The fish aren't biting= taking the bait today.

• This fish tastes funny.

• fish farmed in Canada

• the depletion of fish stocks

Idioms: a queer fish ▪ fish out of water ▪ have other fish to fry ▪ neither fish nor fowl ▪ there are plenty more fish in the sea

Derived: fish for something ▪ fish somebody out