pull English · revision 2994

+ {{infobox|confidence=uncertain|formation=inherited|attested=c. 1000|origins=ang pullian}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /pʊl/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|pullen]], [[inh|ang|pullian|t=to pluck off, draw out]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) a word of unknown or uncertain origin,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(NODE 1998) perhaps related to Low German pūlen “to remove the husk”, Frisian pûlje “to shell, husk”, Middle Dutch polen “to peel, strip” and Icelandic púla “to work hard”.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) Hoad thinks “to pluck, snatch” was the original meaning.^(Hoad 1986) The noun is from the verb.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To pluck or draw out: about 1000, in Old English.^(Barnhart 1988) “To drag, move by pulling” is from about 1300,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) and the word is found in surnames from the mid-13th century.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The word first expressed a short sharp action, like ''pluck'' and ''snatch'',^(Cresswell 2021) and then came to mean one of sustained force.^(NODE 1998) “To pick, gather by hand”, of fruit and flowers, is from the early 14th century, and “to extract, uproot”, of teeth and weeds, from the mid-14th.^(Etymonline) “To attract, draw to oneself” and “to pluck at with the fingers” are from about 1400, and by the late 16th century ''pull'' had replaced ''draw'' in these senses.^(Etymonline) The noun meant a turn at pulling in the mid-14th century, a drink or swig by the 1570s,^(Etymonline) and personal influence, as in ''have pull'', by 1889 in American English.^(Etymonline) ''To pull someone's leg'' is from 1882,^(Etymonline) and ''to pull the plug'' refers to the plug of an early flushing toilet, not an electric plug.^(Cresswell 2021) ''To pull someone's chain'' is from 1974.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1000 – to pluck, draw out.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1300 – to drag.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+ * early 14th century – to pick fruit or flowers.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1400 – to attract.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1440 – noun, an act of pulling.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1570s – noun, a drink.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1882 – ''pull someone's leg''.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1889 – influence.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To apply force to something so as to move it towards oneself; to [[drag]] or [[tug]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To remove from a fixed place; to [[extract]]: ''pull a tooth''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To [[strain]] a muscle.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To attract: ''the show pulled a big crowd''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To row a boat.^(AHD)

+ # To withdraw or cancel: ''pull an advertisement''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # The act of pulling, or the force used.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''(informal)'' Special influence: ''he has pull with the boss''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # A deep drink or puff.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # Something used for pulling, such as a handle.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[puller]]

+ * [[pullable]]

+ * [[pulldown]]

+ * [[pullout]]

+ * [[demand-pull inflation]]

+ * [[tractor pull]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[pluck]]

+ * [[snatch]]

+ * [[pull-over]]

+ * [[pullover]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ The OED has two unrelated older nouns ''pull'': a pool in a stream (about 1075) and a fowl (1604).^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}