pull off

verb

pulled off; pulling off; pulls off

transitive verb

: to carry out despite difficulties : accomplish successfully against odds

the team pulled off an upset

Synonyms of pull off

• fulfill
• accomplish
• perform
• achieve
• execute
• do
• carry out
• make
• carry off
• implement
• put through

Examples of pull off in a Sentence

the rebel forces pulled off a surprisingly successful offensive against the better equipped government troops

Recent Examples on the Web

Democratic challenger Gina Hinojosa has pulled off an upset in the Texas governor’s race, unseating three-term Republican incumbent Greg Abbott. — Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Nov. 2026

Democrats pulled off victories in many tossups as well as in races that were gerrymandered to favor Republicans. — Spencer Kimball,garrett Downs,dan Mangan,kevin Breuninger,justin Papp, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2026

Nixon, 42, is a democratic socialist candidate who pulled off an upset victory against a more moderate opponent in the primary, setting up the race against Moody. — Kaia Hubbard, CBS News, 4 Nov. 2026

Arizona rallied to win that game and nearly pulled off another comeback Monday. — Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1860, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for pull off

• ashraf
• checkoff
• cutoff
• falloff
• handoff
• kickoff
• layoff
• liftoff
• markoff
• markov
• payoff
• playoff