1
as in hauling
to cause to follow by applying steady force on
a team of horses pulling a heavy wagon
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in prying
to draw out by force or with effort
the dentist had to struggle to pull the tooth
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in stretching
to injure by overuse, misuse, or pressure
lift the crate carefully, or you'll pull a muscle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pulling
Then, as the pandemic waned, in 2023 and early ’24, came two jolts to the system – federal pandemic-era assistance ended, pulling food and food-related funding away from charities, and the number of people seeking food continued to grow.
—
Andre Mouchard, Oc Register, 29 Mar. 2026
The trio rebuild the tower and Guerrero goes up again, pulling the line for about four minutes more before the group takes down the tower, wheels the cart away from the window and walks away.
—John Annese, New York Daily News, 29 Mar. 2026
According to court documents, Winfield Officer Paul Shane exited his patrol car June 9, 2024, after pulling Curry over.
—Deborah Laverty, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2026
Perhaps most impressive, Flagg, the youngest player in the NBA, quietly has shouldered the burden of almost singlehandedly pulling the Mavericks’ fanbase from their depths of post-Doncic trade despair.
—Brad Townsend, Dallas Morning News, 28 Mar. 2026
The argument escalates into a physical altercation with the women pushing, punching and pulling hair.
—Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 28 Mar. 2026
Basic features include security scanning, parental controls, and pulling reports.
—George Yang, PC Magazine, 28 Mar. 2026
Agents targeted grocery stores, churches, and construction sites, smashing car windows and pulling people from vehicles or grabbing them at a hardware store parking lot.
—Charlotte Observer, 27 Mar. 2026
The study demonstrates that researchers can achieve unprecedented control over material kinks using sound, even if only by pulling them.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 22 Mar. 2026
Andre Mouchard, Oc Register, 29 Mar. 2026
The trio rebuild the tower and Guerrero goes up again, pulling the line for about four minutes more before the group takes down the tower, wheels the cart away from the window and walks away.
—John Annese, New York Daily News, 29 Mar. 2026
According to court documents, Winfield Officer Paul Shane exited his patrol car June 9, 2024, after pulling Curry over.
—Deborah Laverty, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2026
Perhaps most impressive, Flagg, the youngest player in the NBA, quietly has shouldered the burden of almost singlehandedly pulling the Mavericks’ fanbase from their depths of post-Doncic trade despair.
—Brad Townsend, Dallas Morning News, 28 Mar. 2026
The argument escalates into a physical altercation with the women pushing, punching and pulling hair.
—Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 28 Mar. 2026
Basic features include security scanning, parental controls, and pulling reports.
—George Yang, PC Magazine, 28 Mar. 2026
Agents targeted grocery stores, churches, and construction sites, smashing car windows and pulling people from vehicles or grabbing them at a hardware store parking lot.
—Charlotte Observer, 27 Mar. 2026
The study demonstrates that researchers can achieve unprecedented control over material kinks using sound, even if only by pulling them.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 22 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pulling
Verb
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Truckers also often don’t get paid for months after hauling a load.—
Nathaniel Meyersohn,
CNN Money,
28 Mar. 2026
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The city of Denver is granting ten restaurants up to $3,600 to pay for one year’s worth of compost hauling ahead of a new rule that will require every restaurant in the city to start composting.—
Miguel Otárola,
Denver Post,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Entering his third season at the helm, Counsell is seemingly more comfortable with the uniqueness of managing the Cubs, from the day games to the prying media to the quirkiness of the ballpark, which can favor hitters one day and pitchers the next.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Mar. 2026
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There are those who close their social media accounts, those who move to a ranch away from prying eyes, and those who decide to address the issue.—
Alessandra De Tommasi,
Vanity Fair,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Trolley lines move across the city, stretching as far West as the Darby Transit Center and back East toward 13th street.—
Kaitlyn McCormick,
USA Today,
2 Apr. 2026
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At Fourth and Bainbridge streets in the Queen Village neighborhood, drivers are slowing, stopping and swerving to avoid two large potholes stretching across the roadway.—
Ross DiMattei,
CBS News,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But right now, while the press is still bad and the lawsuits are still dragging, sellers should take a breath.—
Matthew Sedacca,
Curbed,
31 Mar. 2026
-
The SaaSpocalypse, ultimately, was a knee-jerk, existential reaction to where AI is (slowly, in many contexts) dragging the tech stack.—
Allie Garfinkle,
Fortune,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Keep the movement coming from your ribs, rotating, not by yanking your neck.—
Jakob Roze,
Health,
1 Apr. 2026
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In other words, eliminating them from the animal kingdom would be like yanking an entire tier of Jenga blocks out of the middle of the tower.—
Jackie Flynn Mogensen,
Scientific American,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
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After the tea had finished its boil, Meraj poured it out, straining the steaming, fragrant liquid into small cups.—
Nathan Heller,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
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The crisis also is straining government finances.—
Nicholas Gordon,
Fortune,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The movie was a major success, tugging at the heartstrings of pet owners everywhere.—
Victor Tangermann,
Futurism,
26 Mar. 2026
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By July or August, if all goes well, the spacecraft will begin the monthslong process of tugging Swift up, aiming for an altitude of about 550 kilometers.—
Meghan Bartels,
Scientific American,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
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In any context, everyone is justified in resisting or repelling any invasion of their person or property, extracting restitution or exacting punishment in response to an invasion, or helping someone else do the same.—
Connor Okeeffe,
Oc Register,
29 Mar. 2026
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Afghanistan joined Iran as countries singled out by the United States for detaining Americans in hopes of extracting policy concessions.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
25 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pulling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pulling. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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