Fist
Hand with the fingers curled into the palm
拳 · 주먹
- Type
- Punches
- Classified as
- gesture, cold weapon, blunt instrument
- Part of
- hand
A fist is the shape of a hand when the fingers are bent inward against the palm and held there tightly. To make or clench a fist is to fold the fingers tightly into the center of the palm and then to clamp the thumb over the middle phalanges; in contrast to this "closed" fist, one keeps the fist "open" by holding the thumb against the side of the index finger. One uses the closed fist to punch the lower phalanges against a surface, or to pound with the little-finger side of the hand's heel; one uses the open fist to knock with the middle knuckle of the middle finger.
Speakers of some English dialects may use the word "nieve" or "neef" to refer to a fist.
Other punches
Japanese terms for punches
| Term | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 正拳 | seiken | seiken (karate proper fist); straight punch |
| 四つ身 | yotsumi | cross-grips (situation in which each rikishi has an underarm grip on the other) |
| 引っ掛け | hikkake | hook; gab |
| 腕を返す | kainaokaesu | to place one's arms under those of the opponent and lift them up, in order to prevent an overhand grip on one's mawashi |
| 上手投げ | uwatenage | overhand throw |
External links
Facts from Wikidata Q16743864 (CC0); text quoted from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Data retrieved 2026-10-22.
Data: Wikidata (CC0 1.0); Wikipedia (English) (CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.