hand over fist

先月, 新宿駅にオープンした商業施設「NEWoMan」では, 好立地であることを武器に, 新しい経営戦略が展開されています。

STYLE FILES / NEWoMan takes aim at new band of customers

Shopping malls at the terminals of major railway stations are believed to be making money hand over fist because their great locations attract flocks of busy consumers.

These days, saving money and time are said to be factors that dictate consumer behavior, for example the rise of fast-fashion retailers and the brisk business of both shopping malls and online stores.

Shopping mall operator Lumine Co., a unit of East Japan Railway Co., saw substantial business growth in the 2000s as most of its malls are situated in JR East terminal stations. Lumine Man Shibuya and Lumine Yurakucho in Tokyo also are malls operated by the company, but they are not as popular because they are not located in terminal buildings.

以下省略

http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0002862907

本日取り上げる表現は “hand over fist” です。

『新英和大辞典』(第五版, 研究社)には, 「(口語)ものすごく速く[多く], どしどし」と記されていました。この例文として, “He is making money hand over fist.” が挙げられていました。

Merriam-Webster.comには “quickly and large amounts” と定義されています。

もとは “hand over hand” という表現が, 綱などをよじ登る時に左右の手を交互にかける様子を表し, この表現が “hand over fist” の原義となっていることがわかりました。(Cayu)