pull 1 of 2

verb

ˈpu̇l How to pronounce pull (audio)
Definition of pullnext
1
as in to haul
to cause to follow by applying steady force on a team of horses pulling a heavy wagon

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Relevance

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2
as in to pry
to draw out by force or with effort the dentist had to struggle to pull the tooth

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3
as in to stretch
to injure by overuse, misuse, or pressure lift the crate carefully, or you'll pull a muscle

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pull

2 of 2

noun

1
as in tug
the act or an instance of applying force on something so that it moves in the direction of the force I gave the door such a pull that when it suddenly opened, I nearly fell backwards

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2
as in influence
the power to direct the thinking or behavior of others usually indirectly their lawyer supposedly has a lot of pull with the administration in Washington

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3
as in advantage
the more favorable condition or position in a competition a political candidate with all of the pull that comes with a vast fortune and famous surname

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pull
Verb
The styles of the regency era pulled heavily from the classics, referencing the soft, romantic texture of Greek goddesses. — Elle Turner, Glamour, 11 Oct. 2026 Bridgeman missed a chance to pull even on the par-4 17th when his 5-foot birdie putt slid by to the right. — ABC News, 11 Oct. 2026
Noun
Producer Khaled Homsi of Key Film says he was taken at once with the project’s emotional pull and its distinctive vision. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026 Very sensible shoes, like her father used to wear, pull-on Merrell’s, black leather, heavy tread; old man shoes for such a young man. — Literary Hub, 9 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for pull
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pull
  1. haul
  2. yank
  3. stretch
  4. tug
  5. influence
  6. advantage
  7. drag
  8. extract
Verb
  • And few vehicles can switch from carrying a family to hauling furniture quite so easily.
    — Chris Hardesty, AJC.com, 9 Oct. 2026
  • While the university grappled with yet another football scandal, an Ann Arbor moving crew simply got to work—sorting, packing and hauling away the remnants of a fallen career, one item at a time, over the span of six hours.
    — Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of haul
Verb
  • Every belt buckle looks freshly yanked off the rack; every speck of signage resembles something painted 45 minutes before filming commenced that day.
    — Michael Phillips, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
  • One officer yanks him down to the pavement about 20 seconds later.
    — Michele Gile, CBS News, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of yank
Verb
  • Instead, it’s comprised of five—Sani Beach, Sani Asterias, Porto Sani, Sani Dunes, and Sani Club—stretched out across a slip of sandy beach backed by pine forests on the northwestern Aegean.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Blue crabs and crawfish are sourced from Louisiana, while shellfish such as oysters, Manila clams and cherrystone clams arrive from waters stretching from the East Coast to Asia.
    — Sara Rosenthal, Denver Post, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of stretch
Noun
  • Early that morning, an Argentinean naval tug had been bombed by the British, destroying its communications systems.
    — Jordan Salama, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The knitting process is portable and easy, but the structure also means a tug on one loose end can quickly unravel the whole project.
    — Emma Gometz, Scientific American, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of tug
Noun
  • Wall Street’s role in financing the AI boom and data centers, a contentious election issue, as well as its influence on housing and other affordability challenges, is also likely to draw scrutiny, said attorneys and analysts.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 13 Oct. 2026
  • The Mexican pop icon will receive the accolade in recognition of an exceptional career spanning over three decades and his enduring influence on Latin music.
    — Sigal Ratner-Arias, Billboard, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of influence
Noun
  • There are advantages to having a merged Paramount+/HBO Max streaming group, Kogel says.
    — Leo Barraclough, Variety, 12 Oct. 2026
  • My breadth of experience from my upbringing to fighting for Arkansans from all walks of life, gives me an advantage in understanding that life story every person brings into my court.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of advantage
Verb
  • Dozens of locations in the central and southern US will soar to record high temperatures on Tuesday, but the incoming front will drag those highs down by more than 30 degrees in many locales by Friday or Saturday.
    — Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2026
  • As the comet rotates, fresh ice enters the sunlight and sublimates; the escaping gas then drags entrained dust particles away from the nucleus.
    — Joe Rao, Space.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of drag
Verb
  • Rising global demand to extract battery metals like cobalt, nickel, and manganese makes mining increasingly likely.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Both the driver and semi were taken to the Newton-Azrak Station in Murrieta, where hazardous response specialists extracted the liquid contents from the tank, which tested positive for meth, the release said.
    — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of extract

Phrases Containing pull

Browse Nearby Words

puling
pull
pull a face
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Cite this Entry

“Pull.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pull. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on pull

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about pull

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