pluck

verb \ ˈplək \

Definition of pluck

transitive verb

1 :to pull or pick off or out

2 a :to remove something (such as hairs) from by or as if by plucking

pluck one's eyebrows

b :rob, fleece

3 :to move, remove, or separate forcibly or abruptly

plucked the child from the middle of the street

4 a :to pick, pull, or grasp at

b :to play by sounding the strings with the fingers or a pick

intransitive verb

:to make a sharp pull or twitch

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plucker

noun

See pluck defined for English-language learners

See pluck defined for kids

Examples of pluck in a Sentence

My sister plucked a white hair from my head.
The hunter plucked the bird's feathers.
plucking petals off a flower
Firefighters plucked the child from the top floor of the burning building.
He'd been plucked from obscurity and thrust into the national spotlight.
a cat that was plucked off the city's streets last winter
He plucked a stone out of the river.

Recent Examples of pluck from the Web

Pretty straightforward, as is her brow routine: a quick brush up and fill-in sitch, with a quick story detour into adolescent eyebrow plucking trauma (relatable).

— rachel nussbaum, Glamour, "Kendall Jenner's Bronzer Makeup Trick Is Low-Key Genius, and Totally Free," 22 Aug. 2017
The woman plucked the object from the river and put it in her jacket.

— david grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Woman Accidentally Picks Up WWII-Era White Phosphorus," 9 Aug. 2017
Start with the small but respectable chalkboard selection of oysters plucked from the East, West and Gulf coasts, served on a bed of crushed ice with horseradish, cocktail sauce and a biting red wine vinegar mignonette sauce.

— by jodi mailander farrell, miamiherald, "Spunky Ella’s adds oysters to growing Little Havana mix," 9 Aug. 2017
The 2017 version already was rife with intrigue after the Tigers hired Cuonzo Martin to replace Kim Anderson and the Illini plucked former Oklahoma State coach and Kansas State assistant Brad Underwood to replace Groce during the offseason.

— tod palmer, kansascity, "Mizzou, Illinois trade barbs in announcing Braggin’ Rights date," 2 Aug. 2017
Part of the land will be devoted to a garden where veggies will be plucked for the restaurant’s tacos and tortas.

— compiled by malcolm mayhew, star-telegram, "August’s restaurant news features new openings, DFW Restaurant Week," 2 Aug. 2017
Hutson glides like a mountain lion, low to the ground, and then rises to pluck passes from the air.

— tim layden, SI.com, "The MMQB All-Time Draft: The Ultimate Football Fantasy," 19 July 2017
The present task is to pluck those who belong from those who do not.

— matt gelb, Philly.com, "Phillies fall to Marlins in 10 innings," 17 July 2017
There was the night in 1984 when rescuers plucked her from a neighbor’s roof as floodwaters engulfed her house.

— brady dennis, Washington Post, "The country’s flood insurance program is sinking. Rescuing it won’t be easy.," 16 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pluck.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of pluck

Middle English, from Old English pluccian; akin to Middle High German pflücken to pluck

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

pluck Synonyms

Synonyms

beat, bilk, bleed, cheat, chisel, chouse, con, cozen, defraud, diddle, do, do in, euchre, fiddle, flimflam, gaff, gyp, hose [slang], hustle, mulct, nobble [British slang], fleece, ream, rip off, rook, screw, shake down, short, shortchange, skin, skunk, squeeze, stick, stiff, sting, sucker, swindle, thimblerig, victimize

Related Words

extort, wrench, wrest, wring; clip, gouge, nick, overcharge, soak; exploit, milk; deceive, dupe, fool, gull, trick; rope (in); betray, bitch, double-cross; bamboozle, fast-talk

pluck

noun

Definition of pluck

1 :an act or instance of plucking or pulling

2 :the heart, liver, lungs, and trachea of a slaughtered animal especially as an item of food

3 :courageous readiness to fight or continue against odds :dogged resolution

See pluck defined for English-language learners

Examples of pluck in a Sentence

It takes pluck to do what she did.
She showed pluck in getting up on stage.

Recent Examples of pluck from the Web

Her picturesque stage movement speaks to her endearing energy and pluck.

— hugh hunter, Philly.com, "Bet you don't know this Three Musketeers story," 16 July 2017
The song is piloted by soft organ chords, a perky bassline and bubbly plucks, all of which clasp to his mysterious tone.

— david rishty, Billboard, "ZHU's 10 Best Songs: Critic's Picks," 9 June 2017
But her materials sound far more ancient: Violin lines that mix African fiddle techniques with percussive taps and plucks, and bits of modal melody stacked into songs.

— jon pareles, New York Times, "At Moogfest, Untamed Sounds and Futuristic Protests," 22 May 2017
But the city’s heart and its grace for the last 65 years was a woman who had the pluck to venture here — alone — from a small town in Minnesota to seek her higher education degree in the early 1950s.

— howard cohen, miamiherald, "Matriarch of Coral Gables, Marlene Kerdyk, dies at 84," 12 May 2017
The outcome will be decided as much by luck as pluck.

— peter berlin, SI.com, "EPL Notes: Arsène Wenger earns first Premier League win over Jose Mourinho, more," 7 May 2017
The Twins’ big inning, a six-run seventh, was the result of 80 percent patience and 20 percent pluck: a soft single, a bunt single, a sacrifice and a whole bunch of walks.

— tom powers, Twin Cities, "Tom Powers: Twins finally have an opener to remember," 3 Apr. 2017
Pluck apart owl pellets to discover what the prey tells us about the predators.

— kathy bennett, The Mercury News, "Pets and Wildlife: Bay Area adoptions, other events, March 22 and beyond," 22 Mar. 2017
The Cubans have survived the U.S. embargo by their own pluck, by trading with other countries in Latin America and by hosting tourists from Canada and Europe, who have been showing up all along.

— steve lipsher, The Denver Post, "What does Trump mean to Cubans? It’s complicated," 27 Jan. 2017

First Known Use of pluck

15th century

pluck Synonyms

Synonyms

draw, haul, jerk, pull, tug, wrench, yank

Antonyms

push

Related Words

drag, tow; hitch, twitch; grab, snatch

Near Antonyms

heave, shove, thrust

PLUCK Defined for English Language Learners

pluck

verb

Definition of pluck for English Language Learners

: to pull (something) quickly to remove it
: to remove some or all of the feathers or hairs from (something)
: to take (someone or something) away from a place or situation suddenly or by force