1
2
as in to pry
to draw out by force or with effort
the dentist had to struggle to pull the tooth
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in tug
the act or an instance of applying force on something so that it moves in the direction of the force
I gave the door such a pull that when it suddenly opened, I nearly fell backwards
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in influence
the power to direct the thinking or behavior of others usually indirectly
their lawyer supposedly has a lot of pull with the administration in Washington
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in advantage
the more favorable condition or position in a competition
a political candidate with all of the pull that comes with a vast fortune and famous surname
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of pull
Brenton Blanchet, Peoplemag, 3 Feb. 2023
As ghosts, fate and the sheer power of true love pull Nicholas and Isabel together, so too does life threaten to tear them apart.
—Alex Ritman, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Jan. 2023
Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2024
Nearly 57 years after its founding the institution has enough pull to attract fixtures such as the expansive artist Solange Knowles and the inspiring art maven Kimberly Drew.
—Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 30 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for pull 
Verb
During the event, Riley wore black boots, a black dress, held a black and gold bag, and rocked a pair of massive gold hoops to pull it all together.
—Brenton Blanchet, Peoplemag, 3 Feb. 2023
As ghosts, fate and the sheer power of true love pull Nicholas and Isabel together, so too does life threaten to tear them apart.
—Alex Ritman, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Jan. 2023
Noun
Bregman is a pull hitter who benefited from the friendly confines of Minute Maid Park.
—Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2024
Nearly 57 years after its founding the institution has enough pull to attract fixtures such as the expansive artist Solange Knowles and the inspiring art maven Kimberly Drew.
—Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 30 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for pull
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pull
Verb
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Pearsall turned upfield and raced Antoine Winfield Jr. down the sideline, stiff-arming the Tampa Bay safety and fighting off his tackle to reach the end zone just before being hauled out of bounds.Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 10 Nov. 2024
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The weapons were placed in a moving van and hauled away.Perry Vandell, The Arizona Republic, 5 Nov. 2024
Verb
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But that Friday the second-grader was elated to stretch her legs for a bear drive on state game land with her grandfather, her dad, and a dozen of his buddies.Natalie Krebs, Outdoor Life, 7 Nov. 2024
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The basin stretches over eastern Montana, western North Dakota and South Dakota and the southern Canadian province of Saskatchewan.Judith Kohler, The Denver Post, 7 Nov. 2024
Noun
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In this polarizing election climate, watch for the four biases that Harris will most likely face as the first woman of color to run for president in the U.S.: the tightrope, maternal wall, prove it again and tug of war biases.Julie Kratz, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
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Kneeling before me, a genderless cutie in a leather dog mask begs for another round of rope tug.Bae Leche, refinery29.com, 3 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Such a test would be a sign of China’s weakening influence over Pyongyang and could spur Seoul to try to acquire nuclear weapons of its own—a position that both South Korea and the United States officially oppose but is gaining traction in Western policy circles.Sungmin Cho, Foreign Affairs, 12 Nov. 2024
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Powell's comments are likely to be seen as a bid to maintain the Fed's long-standing independence from outside political influence, though whether such immunity actually exists in practice has sometimes been debated.Rob Wile, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2024
Noun
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But that is becoming its strength: the G-20 has a comparative advantage in conferring legitimacy to collective action in an era when many global South states feel that the G-7 is no longer fit for purpose and efforts to reform the UN Security Council’s membership have hit a brick wall.Leslie Vinjamuri, Foreign Affairs, 15 Nov. 2024
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After the margin shrunk to a few hundred votes on Election Day, Campos now holds a 2,442-vote advantage after the release of the most recent ballot results.Devan Patel, The Mercury News, 15 Nov. 2024
Verb
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The longer the war in Ukraine drags on, the more the cost of deterring China goes up.Kori Schake, Foreign Affairs, 8 Nov. 2024
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The ability to drag fringe ideas and theories into mainstream political discourse has long been a hallmark of X, even back when it was known as Twitter.Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 5 Nov. 2024
Verb
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If the court doesn’t grant them that injunction, NASCAR is ready to yank those Charters and let the team’s race as open entries.Greg Engle, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024
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This noted, what Mother is brilliant at is showing us the rug being yanked from under her feet, again and again, in terse, breathless prose—sometimes girlishly purple, at others brusque with the idioms of the era.Will Self, Harper's Magazine, 23 Sep. 2024
Verb
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The public pleas for testing are part of health officials’ efforts to halt the outbreak that has disproportionately hurt Native Americans in the Great Plains and Southwest.Kff Health News, Orange County Register, 13 Nov. 2024
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Matthews devotes one parenthetical sentence claiming rocket launches hurt coastal wildlife.Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 13 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near pull
Cite this Entry
“Pull.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pull. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.
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