Plural of fishpole; long rods used for catching fish by attaching line and hooks to their ends.
From Old English 'fisc' (fish) + 'pole' from Middle Dutch 'pōle' (stick). The compound emerged in Middle English as fishing technology developed, combining the target (fish) with the tool (pole).
Fishpoles represent humanity's oldest form of long-distance tool use for hunting—the simple pole and line design hasn't fundamentally changed in thousands of years, making it one of technology's most durable innovations.
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