Fishing refers to the practise of catching fish either for sport or for food. Fishing is a practise that goes back to ancient times, as civilisations all over the world that have lived by the coast have also learned to hunt for fish and catch them for food.

Fishing is a major industry with fish being shipped all over the world, part of most people's diets. Fishing is also regarded as a hobby and a form of relaxation. Lastly fishing has gained popularity as a sport in some places.

Fishing can be done a variety of ways. In antiquity it was done either by hand or by spear. Fishing by hand is very difficult and considered to be very skilful. Using a spear or a bow is also difficult but was done by ancient Egyptians and Greeks and still is used by some people today. In the past a three-headed spear called a trident was used, which probably gave ride to the image of the Roman sea god Neptune holding trident. Another form is net fishing, where nets are cast into the water to catch fish and particularly the more slippery marine life like eels. Modern fishermen still use nets dragged by boats to trawl the water for a big harvest of fish.

Your average modern man fishing for relaxation will use a fishing rod with bait and hooks, known as angling. Angling is governed by a lot of laws that limit which waters can be fished and whether or not the fish must be returned to the water alive. Many opponents of fishing say that the sport is cruel and painful, and that we should only fish what we need to survive. However, releasing the fish preserves the population and also research has suggested that the fish feel very little pain from being hooked. Nevertheless fishing is a relaxing past time and many people like nothing more than to sit by the riverside and patiently wait for a catch.

Sport fishing is competitive and the rules are based on anything from number of fish caught to the weight and size of the fish. It is more common for sport fishing to go out to sea, where some people tackle the challenge of larger fish such as tuna or even sharks.