All hands-on deck

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Meaning:

All hands-on deck is a phrase that has been said to be in use since about the 1700s. It is a naval expression that has migrated into common use.

In this phrase, the word hands refer to the sailors on the ship and the deck is the upmost tier of a ship.

Origin:

A call for all members of a ship's crew to come to the deck, usually in a time of crisis. (A "hand" is a member of a ship's crew.)

As time went on this changed too anyone and everyone available to help with a problem, or a call for those people to help.

The first written history happened much later than the oral phrase. It was first written in J.G. Bissets, Sail Ho!, in 1958

“…but did his work by day and could sleep all night, unless he was turned out by the cry of "All hands-on deck" to help with handling sail in emergency.”

Example:

Today we still use this phrase when we need everyone around to help out when something needs to be done and done quickly. An example sentence is:

“With only half an hour to get everything ready, it was all hands-on deck.”

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