Pull
[pʊl]
Definition
(noun.) the act of pulling; applying force to move something toward or with you; 'the pull up the hill had him breathing harder'; 'his strenuous pulling strained his back'.
(noun.) a sustained effort; 'it was a long pull but we made it'.
(noun.) a device used for pulling something; 'he grabbed the pull and opened the drawer'.
(noun.) special advantage or influence; 'the chairman's nephew has a lot of pull'.
(noun.) the force used in pulling; 'the pull of the moon'; 'the pull of the current'.
(verb.) strain abnormally; 'I pulled a muscle in my leg when I jumped up'; 'The athlete pulled a tendon in the competition'.
(verb.) hit in the direction that the player is facing when carrying through the swing; 'pull the ball'.
(verb.) cause to move by pulling; 'draw a wagon'; 'pull a sled'.
(verb.) apply force so as to cause motion towards the source of the motion; 'Pull the rope'; 'Pull the handle towards you'; 'pull the string gently'; 'pull the trigger of the gun'; 'pull your knees towards your chin'.
(verb.) rein in to keep from winning a race; 'pull a horse'.
(verb.) operate when rowing a boat; 'pull the oars'.
(verb.) steer into a certain direction; 'pull one's horse to a stand'; 'Pull the car over'.
(verb.) move into a certain direction; 'the car pulls to the right'.
(verb.) take away; 'pull the old soup cans from the supermarket shelf'.
(verb.) cause to move in a certain direction by exerting a force upon, either physically or in an abstract sense; 'A declining dollar pulled down the export figures for the last quarter'.
(verb.) take sides with; align oneself with; show strong sympathy for; 'We all rooted for the home team'; 'I'm pulling for the underdog'; 'Are you siding with the defender of the title?'.
Checked by John--From WordNet
Definition
(v. t.) To draw, or attempt to draw, toward one; to draw forcibly.
(v. t.) To draw apart; to tear; to rend.
(v. t.) To gather with the hand, or by drawing toward one; to pluck; as, to pull fruit; to pull flax; to pull a finch.
(v. t.) To move or operate by the motion of drawing towards one; as, to pull a bell; to pull an oar.
(v. t.) To hold back, and so prevent from winning; as, the favorite was pulled.
(v. t.) To take or make, as a proof or impression; -- hand presses being worked by pulling a lever.
(v. t.) To strike the ball in a particular manner. See Pull, n., 8.
(v. i.) To exert one's self in an act or motion of drawing or hauling; to tug; as, to pull at a rope.
(n.) The act of pulling or drawing with force; an effort to move something by drawing toward one.
(n.) A contest; a struggle; as, a wrestling pull.
(n.) A pluck; loss or violence suffered.
(n.) A knob, handle, or lever, etc., by which anything is pulled; as, a drawer pull; a bell pull.
(n.) The act of rowing; as, a pull on the river.
(n.) The act of drinking; as, to take a pull at the beer, or the mug.
(n.) Something in one's favor in a comparison or a contest; an advantage; means of influencing; as, in weights the favorite had the pull.
(n.) A kind of stroke by which a leg ball is sent to the off side, or an off ball to the side.
Checker: Rene
Synonyms and Synonymous
v. a. [1]. Draw, haul, tug, drag.[2]. Pluck, gather.[3]. Tear, rend, draw apart.
v. n. Tug, give a pull.
Checker: Truman
Synonyms and Antonyms
SYN:Draw, drag, adduce, extract, tug, haul, pluck
ANT:Push, eject, extrude, propel
Checker: Otis
Definition
v.t. to draw or try to draw with force: to draw or gather with the hand: to tear: to pluck: to extract: to move propel by tugging rowing &c.: to transport by rowing: in horse-racing to check a horse in order to prevent its winning: to produce on a printing-press worked by hand: to raid or seize.—v.i. to give a pull: to draw.—n. the act of pulling: a struggle or contest: exercise in rowing: (slang) influence a favourable chance advantage: (coll.) a drink draught: (print.) a single impression of a hand-press.—ns. Pull′-back a restraint: a device for making a woman's gown hang close and straight in front; Pull′er.—Pull a face to draw the countenance into a particular expression: to grimace; Pull apart to bring asunder by pulling; Pull down to take down or apart: to demolish; Pull for to row in the direction of; Pull off to carry anything through successfully; Pull one's self together to collect one's faculties; Pull out to draw out lengthen; Pull the long bow to lie or boast beyond measure; Pull through to get to the end of something difficult or dangerous with some success; Pull up to tighten the reins: to take to task: to bring to a stop: to halt; Pull up stakes to prepare to leave a place.
Inputed by Joe
Examples
- De Guiche, I will not suffer you to kiss and pull my daughters about in this way. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
- Finally I put a rope to my trunk, which was about the size of a carpenter's chest, and started to pull this from the baggage-car to the passenger-car. Frank Lewis Dyer. Edison, His Life and Inventions.
- This shutter was wound up by a spring operated by a pull cord. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
- Well, I won't, but I hate to see things going all crisscross and getting snarled up, when a pull here and a snip there would straighten it out. Louisa May Alcott. Little Women.
- In that case the steady pull on the balance will be one half the weight of the roller; or a force of 6 pounds will suffice to raise the 12-pound roller. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
- As Mr. Muzzle uttered these words, he took a step or two towards the door; and, by way of saving time, began to pull off his coat as he walked along. Charles Dickens. The Pickwick Papers.
- It's some time since I was articled, but the payment of that hundred pounds was a great pull. Charles Dickens. David Copperfield.
- The boy gathers up his change and has pulled the door open by a leather strap nailed to it for the purpose, when Venus cries out: 'Stop him! Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- I had never heard of the institution, and my face must have proclaimed as much, for Sherlock Holmes pulled out his watch. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.
- The horse was snatching grass, swinging his head sideways as he pulled, annoyed by the man and his talking. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- I pulled close up to the shore and lay quiet. Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell To Arms.
- She looked at him as he stood waiting, his black coat buttoned to the chin, his cap pulled down, his boots in his hand. D. H. Lawrence. Women in Love .
- Perdita's questions had ceased; she leaned on my arm, panting with emotions too acute for tears--our men pulled alongside the other boat. Mary Shelley. The Last Man.
- The papers were then brought home again, and the boys amused themselves to their hearts' content until the line was pulled down by a stray cow wandering through the orchard. Frank Lewis Dyer. Edison, His Life and Inventions.
- Keep it lightly firm but not pulling until thou pullest. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- A party that tried to answer every conflicting interest would stand still because people were pulling in so many different directions. Walter Lippmann. A Preface to Politics.
- Such an arrangement of wire is known as a helix or solenoid, and is capable of lifting or pulling larger and more numerous filings and even good-sized pieces of iron, such as tacks. Bertha M. Clark. General Science.
- I thank you, said the young man, rising and pulling on his overcoat. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
- This consisted of mechanical means for throwing the shuttle across the web by a sudden jerk of a bar--one at each side--operated by pulling a cord. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- Three were the oval Mill bomb type, serrated, heavy iron with a spring level held down in position by a cotter pin with pulling rig attached. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- Now, Priest, said, the Knight, pulling off his gauntlet, if I had vantage on my head, I will have none on my hand--stand fast as a true man. Walter Scott. Ivanhoe.
- By this means a large sheet of paper can be printed off by a single pull, and with more impression and greater sharpness than by two pulls with a wooden press. Frederick C. Bakewell. Great Facts.
- But in such striking-out he tangles his arms, pulls strong on the slip-knot, and it runs home. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- Presently he pulls up, all of a sudden, and hollers out, “Where is the sinner; where is the mis'rable sinner? Charles Dickens. The Pickwick Papers.
- Mr. Snagsby pulls off his sleeves and his grey coat, pulls on his black coat, takes his hat from its peg. Charles Dickens. Bleak House.
- He pulls stroke in the Boniface boat. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- Mr. Tulkinghorn steps forward from his window and pulls the bell. Charles Dickens. Bleak House.
- My father pulls up, and thinks a bit--“No,” says he, “damme, I'm too old, b'sides, I'm a many sizes too large,” says he. Charles Dickens. The Pickwick Papers.
Editor: Mary