pluck

1 of 2

verb

ˈplək 

plucked; plucking; plucks

transitive verb

1

: to pull or pick off or out

2

a

: to remove something (such as hairs) from by or as if by plucking

pluck one's eyebrows

b

: rob, fleece

3

: to move, remove, or separate forcibly or abruptly

plucked the child from the middle of the street

4

a

: to pick, pull, or grasp at

b

: to play by sounding the strings with the fingers or a pick

intransitive verb

: to make a sharp pull or twitch

plucker noun

pluck

2 of 2

noun

1

: an act or instance of plucking or pulling

2

: the heart, liver, lungs, and trachea of a slaughtered animal especially as an item of food

3

: courageous readiness to fight or continue against odds : dogged resolution

Synonyms

Verb

• beat
• bilk
• bleed
• cheat
• chisel
• chouse
• con
• cozen
• defraud
• diddle
• do
• do in
• euchre
• fiddle
• fleece
• flimflam
• gaff
• hose [slang]
• hustle
• mulct
• nobble [British slang]
• ream
• rip off
• rook
• screw
• shake down
• short
• shortchange
• skin
• skunk
• squeeze
• stick
• stiff
• sting
• sucker
• swindle
• thimblerig
• victimize

Noun

• draw
• haul
• jerk
• pull
• tug
• wrench
• yank

Examples of pluck in a Sentence

Verb

My sister plucked a white hair from my head.

The hunter plucked the bird's feathers.

plucking petals off a flower

Firefighters plucked the child from the top floor of the burning building.

He'd been plucked from obscurity and thrust into the national spotlight.

a cat that was plucked off the city's streets last winter

He plucked a stone out of the river.

Noun

It takes pluck to do what she did.

She showed pluck in getting up on stage.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Rachel, always a champ, manages to pluck it out while everyone in the shelter ignores her. —Brian Moylan, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2024

At first glance, the kitchen might look plucked from the 19th century, but there are marble countertops and stainless steel appliances that bring it up to date. —Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 5 Nov. 2024

Noun

The movie is full of humor and pluck, but nothing emotionally gut-wrenching. —Jason Parham, WIRED, 15 Aug. 2018

The opening acoustic guitar plucks have little low-mid resonance or string texture in the higher frequencies. —PCMAG, 8 Aug. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English pluccian; akin to Middle High German pflücken to pluck

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing pluck

• pluck at
• pluck up (the) courage

Kids Definition

pluck

1 of 2 verb

ˈplək 

1

a

: to pull or pick off or out

pluck a flower

b

: to remove something (as feathers) from by or as if by plucking

pluck a chicken

2

: to move or separate forcibly : snatch

plucked the child from danger

3

: to play by pulling the strings

pluck a guitar

plucker noun

pluck

2 of 2 noun

1

: a sharp pull : tug

2

: courage, spirit