drag out
phrasal verb
dragged out; dragging out; drags out
1
: to cause (something) to take more time than necessary
He dragged out the speech much too long.
2
: to force (something, such as a confession) from (someone) : to make (someone) tell one (something)
The teacher eventually dragged a confession out of one of the students.
Doctors sometimes have to drag information out of their patients.
Examples of drag out in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In 2022, Bluestone agreed to pay a $925,000 fine and signed a consent decree, but dragged out the payments.
—
Christopher Helman, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025
The effort comes amid a yearslong push within the Democratic Party for older leaders to pass the torch to a younger generation and as some blame 82-year-old President Biden for dragging out his exit from the 2024 campaign.
—Scott MacFarlane, CBS News, 3 Dec. 2024
Brinkema, who wasted no time and frequently urged lawyers to avoid repeating themselves or dragging out litigation with unnecessary testimony throughout the trial, reportedly pushed back.
—Ars Technica, 25 Nov. 2024
With an unforgivable 131-minute running time, The Kissing Booth 2 drags out Elle’s meaningless temptation by hot new transfer student Marco (Taylor Zakhar Perez), who serenades her on the beach by apparently pulling a guitar out of thin air.
—Josh Bell, Vulture, 27 Dec. 2024
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Christopher Helman, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025
The effort comes amid a yearslong push within the Democratic Party for older leaders to pass the torch to a younger generation and as some blame 82-year-old President Biden for dragging out his exit from the 2024 campaign.
—Scott MacFarlane, CBS News, 3 Dec. 2024
Brinkema, who wasted no time and frequently urged lawyers to avoid repeating themselves or dragging out litigation with unnecessary testimony throughout the trial, reportedly pushed back.
—Ars Technica, 25 Nov. 2024
With an unforgivable 131-minute running time, The Kissing Booth 2 drags out Elle’s meaningless temptation by hot new transfer student Marco (Taylor Zakhar Perez), who serenades her on the beach by apparently pulling a guitar out of thin air.
—Josh Bell, Vulture, 27 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for drag out
Dictionary Entries Near drag out
Cite this Entry
“Drag out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drag%20out. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
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