1
general::
By any means possible, in one way or another. For example, The car broke down, but I'll get there by hook or crook. This term has a disputed origin. A widely held theory is that it comes from the custom of allowing commoners to take as much wood from royal forests as they could reach with a shepherd's crook and cut down with a billhook. [1300s] Also see the synonym BY ANY MEANS.
American Heritage Idioms
2
general::
Phrase(s): by hook or (by) crook
by any means, legal or illegal. • I’ll get the job done by hook or by crook. • I must have that house. I intend to get it by hook or crook.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs