1
as in hauling
to cause to follow by applying steady force on
a team of horses pulling a heavy wagon
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in prying
to draw out by force or with effort
the dentist had to struggle to pull the tooth
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in stretching
to injure by overuse, misuse, or pressure
lift the crate carefully, or you'll pull a muscle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pulling
As his career skyrocketed, Chalamet spent years quietly training — aided by an expert on the sport, Diego Schaaf — by pulling a table-tennis setup along to productions ranging from Dune to Wonka.
—
David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 7 Jan. 2026
Notre Dame didn’t mess around in pulling all that material together, looking like a program with a plan before the portal opened.
—Pete Sampson, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Pete Golding was installed as the new head coach and won two playoff games, but several members of the Rebels’ offensive staff have been pulling double-duty.
—Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 7 Jan. 2026
Further complicating matters, Scanlon said, pulling back Medicaid spending would be a huge mistake.
—Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 7 Jan. 2026
Then, on July 26, the North Node enters Aquarius while the South Node moves into Leo, pulling you toward personal growth and away from relationships that require you to shrink or perform.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 7 Jan. 2026
The Kingpins team has heard about some large retailers and brands pulling back from sustainability efforts.
—Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 6 Jan. 2026
Ottawa had a goal called back for goaltender interference and, despite pulling Shepard with more than three minutes remaining, could not complete the comeback.
—CBS News, 6 Jan. 2026
Outside of his ’fits, one of Lyles’ other attention-grabbing moves is pulling Yu-Gi-Oh!
—Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 11 Nov. 2025
David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 7 Jan. 2026
Notre Dame didn’t mess around in pulling all that material together, looking like a program with a plan before the portal opened.
—Pete Sampson, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Pete Golding was installed as the new head coach and won two playoff games, but several members of the Rebels’ offensive staff have been pulling double-duty.
—Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 7 Jan. 2026
Further complicating matters, Scanlon said, pulling back Medicaid spending would be a huge mistake.
—Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 7 Jan. 2026
Then, on July 26, the North Node enters Aquarius while the South Node moves into Leo, pulling you toward personal growth and away from relationships that require you to shrink or perform.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 7 Jan. 2026
The Kingpins team has heard about some large retailers and brands pulling back from sustainability efforts.
—Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 6 Jan. 2026
Ottawa had a goal called back for goaltender interference and, despite pulling Shepard with more than three minutes remaining, could not complete the comeback.
—CBS News, 6 Jan. 2026
Outside of his ’fits, one of Lyles’ other attention-grabbing moves is pulling Yu-Gi-Oh!
—Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 11 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pulling
Verb
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Authorities said a man from Florida was driving a Volvo semi hauling a trailer, and was following behind the southbound Peterbilt at the time of the crash.—
Christa Swanson,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
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Lindsay Trameri spent a good chunk of Thanksgiving weekend hauling fiberglass insulation pads into the attic of her small home in Irvington.—
Sophie Hartley,
IndyStar,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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And rather than Christians leavening the secular right-wing movements, those movements are prying Christianity further and further away from the ethic and teachings of Jesus.—
Peter Wehner,
The Atlantic,
21 Jan. 2026
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Given the material of choice, this pick could also serve as a multi-tool of sorts as well, with examples on the campaign page including prying open a tricky soda can or a quick screw tightening.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
19 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Ferguson has been used as a field-stretching weapon.—
Josh Shepardson,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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Many of our students are already concerned with stretching their paychecks to cover food, rent, transportation and child care.—
Austin Barraza,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Israel had repeatedly accused Hamas of dragging its feet in the recovery of the final hostage.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
26 Jan. 2026
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Israel had repeatedly accused Hamas of dragging its feet in the recovery of Gvili’s remains.—
Julia Frankel,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Armed and masked law enforcement officers are being witnessed smashing car windows, yanking people from vehicles and chasing and wrestling others to the ground and hauling them away — images playing out in endless loops on TVs and other screens.—
Lisa Mascaro,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Jan. 2026
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Multiple videos show agents firing pepper spray from their vehicles, throwing protesters to the ground and yanking people out of cars.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
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With belt-cinching streamers straining to do more with less, sloppy vibe calibration has become a common problem.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
8 Jan. 2026
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Even in states like Texas, which opted not to expand its Medicaid program and continued to rely on counties to care for many of its uninsured, rising health care costs are straining local budgets.—
KFF Health News,
Oc Register,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
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When one attempts to selectively remove weft threads, tugging and pulling them away from neighboring strands as well as the warp around which they are woven, the integrity of the fabric is breached.—
Scott Santarosa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Jan. 2026
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The long day weighs on me, tugging at my eyelids.—
Danielle Parker,
CBS News,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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But extracting them and refining them is the difficult part.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
11 Jan. 2026
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Olive oil is made by crushing olives and extracting their liquids.—
Kirsten Nunez,
Martha Stewart,
10 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pulling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pulling. Accessed 28 Jan. 2026.
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