pull
She had to pull the heavy suitcase up the stairs.
The action of applying force to move something closer.
To exert force on something to move it toward oneself or a specific direction.
He pulled the rope to ring the bell.
Applied force to move the rope toward him.
The train pulled into the station.
Moved into the station under its own power.
Can imply a gentle or strong action; often used with objects like doors, curtains, or vehicles.
To attract or draw toward oneself or a place.
The new movie pulled in large crowds.
Attracted many people to watch it.
Her speech pulled the audience in.
Captured the audience's attention and interest.
Common in contexts like marketing, entertainment, or social interactions.
To remove or extract something from a place.
The dentist pulled her tooth.
Extracted the tooth from her mouth.
He pulled a coin from his pocket.
Removed the coin from his pocket.
Often used for physical objects or abstract things like ideas.
(Computing) To retrieve data from a storage device or network.
The app pulls data from the cloud every hour.
Retrieves updated information from remote servers.
Common in software development and IT contexts.
Related Phrases
Pro Tip
Prepositions Matter
The meaning of 'pull' changes drastically with prepositions. For example, 'pull out' can mean to remove something or to leave a place quickly, while 'pull up' often refers to stopping a vehicle or accessing data.
Gold Rule
Physical vs. Metaphorical Use
Use 'pull' literally for actions involving force (e.g., pulling a rope) and figuratively for attraction or influence (e.g., pulling an all-nighter).
Word Origin
From Middle English *pullen*, from Old English *pullian* (to pluck, tug), of imitative origin, related to Low German *pullen* and Dutch *pullen*.
Usage Notes
The verb 'pull' is highly versatile and used in both literal and figurative contexts. It can describe physical actions (e.g., pulling a door) or metaphorical ones (e.g., pulling an all-nighter). Pay attention to prepositions (e.g., 'pull out,' 'pull up') as they often change the meaning significantly.