pull
Etymology
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Etymology
Verb from Middle English pullen, from Old English pullian, of uncertain ultimate origin.
Noun from Middle English pul, pull, pulle, from the verb pullen.
Pronunciation- IPA: /pʊl/ (enPR: po͝ol)
- (Northern England) IPA: /pʊɫ/
- (Southern England, Central England, RP) IPA: /pʰəl/
- (Scotland, Northern Ireland) IPA: /pʉl/
- (Some speakers) IPA: [pʊ̈˕ʟˤ]
- (full–fool merger) IPA: /puːl/
pull (pulls, present participle pulling; simple past and past participle pulled)
- (transitive, intransitive) To apply a force to (an object) so that it comes toward the person or thing applying the force.
- When I give the signal, pull the rope.
- You're going to have to pull harder to get that cork out of the bottle.
- c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, [Act IV, scene iii]:
- Ne'er pull your hat upon your brows.
- To gather with the hand, or by drawing toward oneself; to pluck or pick (flowers, fruit, etc.).
- to pull fruit from a tree
- pull flax
- pull a finch
- 1751, [Tobias] Smollett, The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle […], volume (please specify |volume=I to IV), London: Harrison and Co., […], →OCLC ↗:
- He and some of his companions one day entered a garden in the suburbs, and having indulged their appetites, desired to know what satisfaction they must make for the fruit they had pulled.
- (transitive) To attract or net; to pull in.
- 2002, Marcella Ridlen Ray, Changing and Unchanging Face of United States Civil Society:
- Television, a favored source of news and information, pulls the largest share of advertising monies.
- 2011, Russell Simmons, Chris Morrow, Super Rich: A Guide to Having It All:
- While the pimp can always pull a ho with his magnetism, he can never pull a nun. The nun is too in touch with her own compassionate and honest spirit to react to a spirit as negative and deceitful as that of the pimp.
- (ambitransitive, UK, Ireland, slang) To persuade (someone) to have sex with one.
- I pulled at the club last night.
- He's pulled that bird over there.
- (transitive) To remove or withdraw (something), especially from public circulation or availability.
- Each day, they pulled the old bread and set out fresh loaves.
- The book was due to be released today, but it was pulled at the last minute over legal concerns.
- (transitive) To retrieve or look up for use.
- I'll have to pull a part number for that.
- This computer file is incorrect. Can we pull the old version from your backups?
- 2006, Michael Bellomo, Joel Elad, How to Sell Anything on Amazon...and Make a Fortune!:
- They'll go through their computer system and pull a report of all your order fulfillment records for the time period you specify.
- (construction) To obtain (a permit) from a regulatory authority.
- It's the contractor's responsibility to pull the necessary permits before starting work.
- (transitive, informal) To do or perform, especially something seen as negative by the speaker.
- He regularly pulls 12-hour days, sometimes 14.
- You'll be sent home if you pull another stunt like that.
- What are you trying to pull?
(with 'a' and the name of a person, place, event, etc.) To copy or emulate the actions or behaviour associated with the person or thing mentioned. - He pulled an Elvis and got really fat.
- They're trying to pull a Watergate scandal on us.
- To toss a frisbee with the intention of launching the disc across the length of a field.
- (intransitive) To row.
- (transitive, rowing) To achieve by rowing on a rowing machine.
- I pulled a personal best on the erg yesterday.
- To draw apart; to tear; to rend.
- 2009, Ardie A. Davis, Chef Paul Kirk, America's Best BBQ, page 57:
- If you are going to pull or chop the pork butt, take it out of the smoker when the meat is in the higher temperature range, put it in a large pan, and let it rest, covered, for 15 to 20 minutes. Using heavy-duty dinner forks, pull the pork butt to shreds.
- (transitive) To strain (a muscle, tendon, ligament, etc.).
- (video games, ambitransitive) To draw (a hostile non-player character) into combat, or toward or away from some location or target.
- (UK) To score a certain number of points in a sport.
- How many points did you pull today, Albert?
- (horse-racing) To hold back, and so prevent from winning.
- The favourite was pulled.
- (printing, dated) To take or make (a proof or impression); so called because hand presses were worked by pulling a lever.
- (cricket, golf) To strike the ball in a particular manner. (See noun sense.)
- 1888, Robert Henry Lyttelton, Cricket, Chapter 2:
- Never pull a straight fast ball to leg.
- (UK) To draw beer from a pump, keg, or other source.
- Let's stop at Finnigan's. The barman pulls a good pint.
- (intransitive) To take a swig or mouthful of drink.
- 1957, Air Force Magazine, volume 40, page 128:
- Danny pulled at his beer and thought for a moment.
- (rail transportation, US, of a railroad car) To pull out from a yard or station; to leave.
- (transitive, law enforcement) To pull over (a driver or vehicle); to detain for a traffic stop.
- The state trooper pulled me for going 60 in a 55 zone.
- (cooking, transitive, intransitive) To repeatedly stretch taffy in order to achieve the desired stretchy texture.
- (computing) To retrieve source code or other material from a source control repository.
- (martial arts) In practice fighting, to reduce the strength of a blow (etymology 3) so as to avoid injuring one's practice partner.
- (horse racing, transitive) To impede the progress of (a horse) to prevent its winning a race.
- (apply force to (something) so it comes toward) drag, tow, tug, yank
- (slang: to persuade to have sex with one) score
- (to remove from circulation) recall, withdraw, yank
- (to do, to perform) carry out, complete, do, execute, perform
- (to retrieve or look up for use) generate, get, get hold of, get one's hands on, lay one's hands on, obtain, retrieve
- (to succeed in finding a person with whom to have sex.) score
- French: tirer
- German: ziehen
- Italian: tirare
- Portuguese: puxar, tirar
- Russian: тяну́ть
- Spanish: tirar, jalar
- Portuguese: dar
- Spanish: tirón
- Spanish: ligar
- French: tirer un coup
- (gun sports) Command used by a target shooter to request that the target be released/launched.
pull
- (countable) An act of pulling applying force toward oneself.
- He gave the hair a sharp pull and it came out.
- She took several pulls on her cigarette.
- 1726 October 27, [Jonathan Swift], Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. […] [Gulliver's Travels], volume I, London: […] Benj[amin] Motte, […], →OCLC ↗, part I (A Voyage to Lilliput):
- I found myself suddenly awaked with a violent pull upon the ring, which was fastened at the top of my box.
- (uncountable) An attractive force which causes motion towards the source.
- The spaceship came under the pull of the gas giant.
- iron fillings drawn by the pull of a magnet
- (uncountable, figurative) An advantage over somebody; a means of influencing.
- The hypnotist exerted a pull over his patients.
- 1944, Henry Christopher Bailey, The Queen of Spades, page 72:
- Tresham's up to his eyes in dock business and town business, a regular jobmonger, he has no use for anybody who hasn't a pull.
- (uncountable, figurative, informal) The power to influence someone or something; sway, clout.
- I don't have a lot of pull within the company.
- (countable) Any device meant to be pulled, as a lever, knob, handle, or rope.
- a zipper pull
- (figurative, slang, dated) Something in one's favour in a comparison or a contest; advantage.
- In weights the favourite had the pull.
- (uncountable, figurative) Appeal or attraction.
- the pull of a movie star
- (Internet) The act or process of sending out a request for data from a server by a client.
- server pull
- pull technology
- (countable) A journey made by rowing.
- 1874, Marcus Clarke, For the Term of His Natural Life Chapter V
- As Blunt had said, the burning ship lay a good twelve miles from the Malabar, and the pull was a long and a weary one. Once fairly away from the protecting sides of the vessel that had borne them thus far on their dismal journey, the adventurers seemed to have come into a new atmosphere.
- 1874, Marcus Clarke, For the Term of His Natural Life Chapter V
- (dated) A contest; a struggle.
- a wrestling pull
- 1609, Richard Carew, The Survey of Cornwall. […], new edition, London: […] B. Law, […]; Penzance, Cornwall: J. Hewett, published 1769, →OCLC ↗:
- this wrastling pull betweene Corineus and Gogmagog, is reported to have befallen at Douer.
- (countable) An injury resulting from a forceful pull on a limb, etc.; strain; sprain.
- (obsolete, poetic) Loss, misfortune, or violence suffered.
- 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies. […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, [Act II, scene iii]:
- Two pulls at once; / His lady banished, and a limb lopped off.
- (countable, colloquial) A drink, especially of an alcoholic beverage; a mouthful or swig of a drink.
- (cricket) A type of stroke by which a leg ball is sent to the off side, or an off ball to the on side; a pull shot.
- 1887, R. A. Proctor, Longman's Magazine:
- The pull is not a legitimate stroke, but bad cricket.
- (golf) A mishit shot which travels in a straight line and (for a right-handed player) left of the intended path.
- (printing, historical) A single impression from a handpress.
- (printing) A proof sheet.
- (gacha games) A player's use of a game's gacha mechanic to obtain a random reward.
- (act of pulling) tug, yank
- (attractive force) attraction
- (device meant to be pulled) handle, knob, lever, rope
- (influence) influence, sway
- (a puff on a cigarette) drag, toke (marijuana cigarette)
- (antonym(s) of “act of pulling”): push, shove
- (antonym(s) of “attractive force”): repulsion
- (antonym(s) of “device meant to be pulled”): button, push, push-button
- (antonym(s) of “influence”):
- Portuguese: atração
- Russian: притяже́ние
- French: influence
- Russian: козыри
- Russian: притяга́тельность
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.001
