What does pull mean?

Definitions for pull
pʊlpull

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word pull.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. pull, pullingnoun

    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"

  2. pullnoun

    the force used in pulling

    "the pull of the moon"; "the pull of the current"

  3. pull, cloutnoun

    special advantage or influence

    "the chairman's nephew has a lot of pull"

  4. pullnoun

    a device used for pulling something

    "he grabbed the pull and opened the drawer"

  5. wrench, twist, pullnoun

    a sharp strain on muscles or ligaments

    "the wrench to his knee occurred as he fell"; "he was sidelined with a hamstring pull"

  6. puff, drag, pullnoun

    a slow inhalation (as of tobacco smoke)

    "he took a puff on his pipe"; "he took a drag on his cigarette and expelled the smoke slowly"

  7. pullverb

    a sustained effort

    "it was a long pull but we made it"

  8. pull, draw, forceverb

    cause to move by pulling

    "draw a wagon"; "pull a sled"

  9. attract, pull, pull in, draw, draw inverb

    direct toward itself or oneself by means of some psychological power or physical attributes

    "Her good looks attract the stares of many men"; "The ad pulled in many potential customers"; "This pianist pulls huge crowds"; "The store owner was happy that the ad drew in many new customers"

  10. pullverb

    move into a certain direction

    "the car pulls to the right"

  11. pullverb

    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"

  12. perpetrate, commit, pullverb

    perform an act, usually with a negative connotation

    "perpetrate a crime"; "pull a bank robbery"

  13. draw, pull, pull out, get out, take outverb

    bring, take, or pull out of a container or from under a cover

    "draw a weapon"; "pull out a gun"; "The mugger pulled a knife on his victim"

  14. pullverb

    steer into a certain direction

    "pull one's horse to a stand"; "Pull the car over"

  15. pull, overstretchverb

    strain abnormally

    "I pulled a muscle in my leg when I jumped up"; "The athlete pulled a tendon in the competition"

  16. pull, drawverb

    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"

  17. pullverb

    operate when rowing a boat

    "pull the oars"

  18. pullverb

    rein in to keep from winning a race

    "pull a horse"

  19. rend, rip, rive, pullverb

    tear or be torn violently

    "The curtain ripped from top to bottom"; "pull the cooked chicken into strips"

  20. pullverb

    hit in the direction that the player is facing when carrying through the swing

    "pull the ball"

  21. pluck, pull, tear, deplume, deplumate, displumeverb

    strip of feathers

    "pull a chicken"; "pluck the capon"

  22. extract, pull out, pull, pull up, take out, draw outverb

    remove, usually with some force or effort; also used in an abstract sense

    "pull weeds"; "extract a bad tooth"; "take out a splinter"; "extract information from the telegram"

  23. pull, root forverb

    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?"

  24. pullverb

    take away

    "pull the old soup cans from the supermarket shelf"

Wiktionary

  1. pullnoun

    An act of pulling (applying force)

    He gave the hair a sharp pull and it came out.

  2. pullnoun

    An attractive force which causes motion towards the source

  3. pullnoun

    Any device meant to be pulled, as a lever, knob, handle, or rope

    a zipper pull

  4. pullnoun

    influence, especially as a means of gaining advantage

  5. pullnoun

    Appeal or attraction or (as of a movie star)

  6. pullnoun

    The situation where a client sends out a request for data from a server, as in server pull, pull technology

  7. pullnoun

    A journey made by rowing

  8. pullverb

    to apply a force to (an object) so that it comes toward the person or thing applying the force

  9. pullverb

    to persuade (someone) to have sex with one

  10. pullverb

    to remove (something), especially from public circulation or availability

    Each day, they pulled the old bread and set out fresh loaves.

  11. pullverb

    to do or perform

  12. pullverb

    to retrieve or generate for use

    I'll have to pull a part number for that.

  13. pullverb

    to apply a force such that an object comes toward the person or thing applying the force

    You're going to have to pull harder to get that cork out of the bottle.

  14. pullverb

    to toss a frisbee with the intention of launching the disc across the length of a field

  15. pullverb

    to row

  16. Etymology: From pullen, from pullian. Related to pullen, pulen, púla.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Pullnoun

    The act of pulling; pluck.

    Etymology: from the verb.

    This wrestling pull between Corineus and Gogmagog is reported to have befallen at Dover. Carew.

    Duke of Glo’ster, scarce himself,
    That bears so shrewd a maim; two pulls at once;
    His lady banish’d, and a limb lopt off. William Shakespeare.

    I awaked with a violent pull upon the ring, which was fastened at the top of my box. Gulliver’s Travels.

  2. To PULLverb

    Etymology: pullian , Saxon.

    What they seem to offer us with the one hand, the same with the other they pull back. Richard Hooker.

    He put forth his hand, and pulled the dove in. Gen. viii. 9.

    His hand which he put forth dried up, so that he could not pull it in again. 1 Kings xiii. 4.

    Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, and prepare them for the day of slaughter. Jer. vii. 11.

    They pulled away the shoulder and stopped their ears. Zech.

    Ill fortune never crushed that man, whom good fortune deceived not; I therefore have counselled my friends to place all things she gave them so, as she might take them from them, not pull them. Ben Jonson, Discovery.

    He was not so desirous of wars, as without just cause of his own to pull them upon him. John Hayward.

    A boy came in great hurry to pull off my boots. Jonathan Swift.

    When bounteous Autumn rears his head,
    He joys to pull the ripen’d pear. Dryden.

    Flax pulled in the bloom, will be whiter and stronger than if let stand till the seed is ripe. John Mortimer.

    He hath turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces; he hath made me desolate. Lam. iii. 2.

    Ye pull off the robe with the garment from them that pass by securely. Mic. ii. 8.

    I rent my cloaths, and pulled off the hair from off my head. 1 Esdr. viii. 71.

    Although it was judged in form of a statute, that he should be banished, and his whole estate confiscated, and his houses pulled down, yet his case even then had no great blot of ignominy. Francis Bacon.

    In political affairs, as well as mechanical, it is far easier to pull down than build up; for that structure, which was above ten summers a building, and that by no mean artists, was destroyed in a moment. James Howell, Vocal Forest.

    When God is said to build or pull down, ’tis not to be understood of an house; God builds and unbuilds worlds. Burn.

    He begs the gods to turn blind fortune’s wheel,
    To raise the wretched, and pull down the proud. Wentworth Dillon.

    What title has this queen but lawless force?
    And force must pull her down. Dryden.

    What censure, doubting thus of innate principles, I may deserve from men, who will be apt to call it pulling up the old foundations of knowledge, I cannot tell; I persuade myself, that the way I have pursued, being conformable to truth, lays those foundations surer. John Locke.

ChatGPT

  1. pull

    Pull generally refers to the act of applying force to move something towards oneself or a particular direction. It may also refer to an attraction or influence exerted by someone or something.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Pullverb

    to draw, or attempt to draw, toward one; to draw forcibly

  2. Pullverb

    to draw apart; to tear; to rend

  3. Pullverb

    to gather with the hand, or by drawing toward one; to pluck; as, to pull fruit; to pull flax; to pull a finch

  4. Pullverb

    to move or operate by the motion of drawing towards one; as, to pull a bell; to pull an oar

  5. Pullverb

    to hold back, and so prevent from winning; as, the favorite was pulled

  6. Pullverb

    to take or make, as a proof or impression; -- hand presses being worked by pulling a lever

  7. Pullverb

    to strike the ball in a particular manner. See Pull, n., 8

  8. Pullverb

    to exert one's self in an act or motion of drawing or hauling; to tug; as, to pull at a rope

  9. Pullnoun

    the act of pulling or drawing with force; an effort to move something by drawing toward one

  10. Pullnoun

    a contest; a struggle; as, a wrestling pull

  11. Pullnoun

    a pluck; loss or violence suffered

  12. Pullnoun

    a knob, handle, or lever, etc., by which anything is pulled; as, a drawer pull; a bell pull

  13. Pullnoun

    the act of rowing; as, a pull on the river

  14. Pullnoun

    the act of drinking; as, to take a pull at the beer, or the mug

  15. Pullnoun

    something in one's favor in a comparison or a contest; an advantage; means of influencing; as, in weights the favorite had the pull

  16. Pullnoun

    a kind of stroke by which a leg ball is sent to the off side, or an off ball to the side

  17. Etymology: [AS. pullian; cf. LG. pulen, and Gael. peall, piol, spiol.]

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Pull

    pōōl, 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. [A.S. pullian; conn. with Low Ger. pulen, to pluck.]

The Standard Electrical Dictionary

  1. Pull

    A switch for closing a circuit when pulled. It is used instead of a push button, q.v., in exposed situations, as its contacts are better protected than those of the ordinary push button.

Suggested Resources

  1. PULL

    What does PULL stand for? -- Explore the various meanings for the PULL acronym on the Abbreviations.com website.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. PULL

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Pull is ranked #133863 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Pull surname appeared 126 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Pull.

    82.5% or 104 total occurrences were White.
    9.5% or 12 total occurrences were Asian.
    4.7% or 6 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'pull' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #2939

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'pull' in Written Corpus Frequency: #1069

  3. Verbs Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'pull' in Verbs Frequency: #165

How to pronounce pull?

How to say pull in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of pull in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of pull in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of pull in a Sentence

  1. Elvis Picardo:

    Does it pull back? Does it go further up from here? It's one of those inflection points that's a little hard to call.

  2. George Madhavan:

    In about a lifetime, we have transformed Singapore, it's not rocket science - it is more political will ... The key success factor is really government - the leadership to pull different agencies together to come up with a plan ...

  3. Donald Ellenberger:

    If we continue to see the employment rate go down, that could pull forward the beginning of the Fed tightening cycle.

  4. Jeff Witjas:

    It’s a wonderful tribute, and she has to pull this.

  5. Bob Allisat:

    To pull together is to avoid being pulled apart.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

pull#1#3810#10000

Translations for pull

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

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"pull." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/pull>.

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    applied to a fish depicted horizontally
    A commensal
    B ostensive
    C tenebrous
    D naiant

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