A hook is a punch

Punch (strike)

A punch is a striking blow with the fist. It is the most commonly used attack in hand to hand combat. It is used in some martial arts and combat sports, most notably boxing where it is the only type of technique allowed...

 in boxing

Boxing

Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...

. It is performed by turning the core muscles and back, thereby swinging the arm, which is bent at an angle near or at 90 degrees, in a horizontal arc into the opponent. A hook is usually aimed at the chin

Chin

In the human anatomy, the chin is the lowermost part of the face.It is formed by the lower front of the mandible.People show a wide variety of chin structures. See Cleft chin....

, but it can also be used for body shots, especially to the liver

Liver shot

A liver shot is a punch, kick, or knee strike to the right side of the ribcage that damages the liver. Blunt force to the liver can be excruciatingly painful, and an especially effective shot will incapacitate a person...

.

Hook punches can be thrown by either the lead hand or the rear hand, but the term used without a qualifier usually refers to a lead hook.

When throwing a hook, the puncher shifts his body weight to the rear, or supporting foot, allowing him to pivot his lead foot and torso, swinging his lead fist horizontally toward the opponent. Sometimes, depending on style and what feels comfortable to the individual, the lead foot is not pivoted. Pivoting increases the power of the punch, but leaves one lacking in options to follow up with, such as the right uppercut or right hook.
The hook is a powerful punch with knockout power.

Variations of the hook are the shovel hook or upper-hook; they are body punches that combine characteristics of both the hook and the uppercut.

Another variation on the hook is the check hook

Check hook

In boxing, a check hook is employed to prevent aggressive boxers from lunging in. There are two parts to the check hook. The first part consists of a regular hook. The second, trickier part involves the footwork. As the opponent lunges in, the boxer should throw the hook and pivot on his left foot...

, which combines an ordinary hook with footwork that removes a boxer from the path of a lunging opponent.

See also

• Jab
  Jab
  A jab is a type of punch used in the martial arts.Several variations of the jab exist, but every jab shares these characteristics: while in a fighting stance, the lead fist is thrown straight ahead and the arm is fully extended...
  
  
• Cross (boxing)
  Cross (boxing)
  In boxing, a cross is a power-punch like the uppercut and hook. Compubox, a computerized punch scoring system, counts the cross as a power-punch....
  
  
• Uppercut
• Bolo punch
  Bolo punch
  A bolo punch is a punch used in Martial arts. The bolo punch is among the traditional boxing punches . Used many times and can cause powerful knockouts....
  
  
• Swing
  Swing (boxing)
  The swing is a type of hook, with the main difference being that in the swing the arm is usually more extended....