I.verbCOLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a car pulls out (=moves away from the side of the road)
▪ A car suddenly pulled out in front of me.
a car pulls over (=stops on the side of a road)
a car pulls up (=stops)
▪ Why’s that police car pulling up here?
a train pulls into/out of a station
▪ The train pulled into Euston station and I got off.
back out of/pull out of a deal (=decide not to make a deal after discussing one)
▪ Twenty-five jobs were lost after their partner pulled out of the deal.
be pulled from the wreckage
▪ The driver was pulled from the wreckage of his car.
break/pull/struggle free
▪ She broke free from her attacker.
draw/close/pull the curtains (=close them)
▪ The room was dark because the curtains were drawn.
gravitational pull
▪ the gravitational pull of the Moon
open/draw (back)/pull back the curtains (=open them)
▪ Would you mind opening the curtains?
open/pull down/draw the blinds
pull a crowd/pull in the crowds (=make a lot of people come to something)
▪ Low prices always pull in the crowds.
pull a crowd/pull in the crowds (=make a lot of people come to something)
▪ Low prices always pull in the crowds.
pull down/knock down/tear down a building
▪ All the medieval buildings were torn down.
pull in the punters (=attract them)
▪ You need something to pull in the punters .
pull off a victory (=win when it is difficult)
▪ Martin pulled off a surprise victory in the semi-final.
pull off a win (=win when it is difficult to win)
▪ The side has pulled off two excellent wins in the past couple of weeks.
pull on/drag on/draw on a cigarette (=smoke a cigarette with deep breaths)
▪ Ed was leaning out of the window and dragging on a cigarette.
pull open/pull out a drawer (=open it)
▪ He pulled open drawers until he found the papers.
pull open/pull out a drawer (=open it)
▪ He pulled open drawers until he found the papers.
pull out of a dive (=stop a plane going down)
▪ He tried to pull out of the steep dive before hitting the ground.
pull tab
pull...apart
▪ A couple of men started fighting and we had to pull them apart.
pull/drag/haul yourself into a position
▪ She pulled herself into a sitting position.
pull/draw up a chair (=move a chair nearer someone or something)
▪ Pull up a chair and look at these pictures.
pulled a hamstring
▪ He pulled a hamstring in training.
pulled...tight
▪ She tied the rope around the post and pulled it tight.
pulling power
▪ Madonna’s pulling power filled the Arena for 10 nights.
pull/kick/slam sth shut
▪ He pulled the trapdoor shut over his head.
Pull...lever
▪ Pull this lever to open the gate.
pull/make a face (=to change your expression to make people laugh or to show you are angry, disappointed etc)
▪ Here’s a funny photo of Joe pulling a face.
pull/push yourself upright
▪ He pulled himself upright on the sofa.
pull/squeeze the trigger
▪ He took aim and squeezed the trigger.
pull/strain a muscle (=injure it)
▪ He pulled a muscle in his calf.
put on/pull on your gloves
▪ Eleanor put on her gloves and stood up.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
apart
▪ But I fear we are now being pulled apart - by commercial pressures and by the changes forced upon the broadcasting environment.
▪ He said something, and they pulled apart and both started talking at once.
▪ The kill is pulled apart in a way most people would find unedifying, despite assurances.
▪ He succeeded in pulling apart my clenched arms and started on my legs.
▪ Then comes anaphase I: the quartet of chromatids are pulled apart so as to form two sets of paired chromatids.
▪ Does the crust separate or pull apart from itself just under the dome?
▪ Concrete is extremely strong when compressed but has no strength at all when pulled apart.
away
▪ A minute later, Dougal tried to pull away.
▪ Leg meat should remain moist and just pull away from the bone.
▪ Eventually she pulled away a little, mopping her cheeks with her wrist.
▪ A letter sweater pulling away from blistered shoulders.
▪ I pull away to do seal impressions, rolling over and over.
▪ I saw his carriage, a fine two-horse brougham, pull away as I arrived for my visit.
▪ She stiffened, trying to pull away.
▪ My last look at them was from the back of a truck as I pulled away.
back
▪ He shuddered, his hand going to the bone handle of his dagger though he dare not pull back.
▪ Disconnection is equally easy, requiring just the grey collar to be pulled back.
▪ Then I felt him pull back, almost withdrawing, and he held himself there.
▪ Then, just as he responds, pull back out of range, deflecting his technique and countering.
▪ She seemed to shiver when they pulled back to look at each other, faces flushed with emotion.
▪ All units are to pull back.
▪ He was rather shy, and pulled back.
down
▪ The original bricks and mortar might be pulled down but Leatherslade Farm will remain for ever at the centre of the legend.
▪ It is even more disturbing that job market trends in the mid-1990s pulled down new groups of workers.
▪ He pulled down the wires that had let Jekub taste the electricity.
▪ The wrinkles around his mouth pulled down sternly as he talked about the upcoming missions.
▪ Other high-rise blocks are still being pulled down.
▪ Shops closed in mourning and even the post office pulled down its shutters.
▪ Here's a pair of jeans, pulled down to reveal a shaven male crotch.
▪ The pulling down of the right sheath, the ripping sound always convinced her it hurt.
in
▪ Charlotte walked slowly on to the platform and waited for her train to pull in.
▪ A secondary offering earlier this year pulled in about $ 26 million at $ 19. 25 per share.
▪ The 2x2 welt is useful if you want a rib which pulls in more tightly than the 2x1 welt.
▪ A train pulls in and the doors open.
▪ Even as recognition flashed into his mind, Ockleton pulled in by the hedge and stopped the car.
▪ I rounded the curve, looking for a place to pull in.
▪ Then Sir Alfred pulled in in his Bentley and promised me a free hand to design a car that worked.
▪ Secret Service agents estimate that the system pulled in about 40, 000 codes.
off
▪ Skill Oxton just failed to pull off victory at Hightown on a rain affected wicket.
▪ Straightening up after bending over to pull off her shoes was difficult.
▪ Langley pulled off a major surprise by beating title-chasing Gretna 2-1 away from home, despite having a man sent off.
▪ In one of the passes they pulled off the paved highway and parked out of sight of it, among limestone boulders.
▪ Super Channel wanted to run it but were told by the I.T.C. they'd be pulled off the air if they did.
▪ I think the message of this election is that the pro-family movement pulled off what it has never achieved in its history.
▪ A professional golfer tries to pull off a confidence trick against his own body.
▪ Both of those editions were pulled off the racks by supermarket chains that had received complaints from customers.
out
▪ Sofas and other furniture have been overturned, drawers pulled out, windows broken.
▪ When it happened, when she was pulled out like this, she felt sick, giddy and unbalanced.
▪ He pulled out all their chairs, handed them each an opened menu, then bowed and backed away.
▪ Ismail Sahputra, spokesman for the Free Aceh Movement, said as many as 30,000 soldiers would be pulled out.
▪ Then came the sudden peso devaluation that December, and Jimenez pulled out $ 70 million more.
▪ Mesh was in talks to buy the troubled company but pulled out at the last minute.
▪ He reached into a backpack and pulled out a small rug and put it out in front of me.
over
▪ Then a shin guard is pulled over the whole thing.
▪ When Jodzis did not pull over, officers used a car as a roadblock on a narrow street.
▪ Fifteen miles south of Garberville my eyes began to close and I pulled over and slept for half an hour.
▪ Alan Anderson pulled over to brace himself for the big-city traffic ahead.
▪ A side road appeared, a soft and dusty grey-white in the blackness, and they pulled over.
▪ Intrigued, she followed the car until the driver noticed she was being followed and pulled over.
▪ I pulled over to the emergency lane, barely able to see the other cars on the road.
▪ He put a tentative arm up; instantly one pulled over, in a rolling wave of black slush.
through
▪ The gate swung open and the Lada pulled through.
▪ Santamour wondered if they might pull through.
▪ Fortunately, though, we had a fighting spirit which helped us pull through.
▪ How else could he have pulled through, against such odds?
▪ Although his situation was critical - and, for a man of his age almost hopeless he pulled through.
▪ My gut feeling is that one way or another Congress will pull through.
▪ He pulled through, but then his kidneys failed and he died.
▪ Peggy and Jamie wait anxiously by Phil's bedside and it's soon clear that he's going to pull through.
together
▪ Double sets of wheels pull together like centipede rolling stock.
▪ But for those few in the know, it is easy to pull together these facts into an interesting whole.
▪ A useful activity is to pull together the governors of several neighbouring schools for training and updating on topical issues.
▪ Radical restructuring could work only if Sam had people on his side, pulling together instead of pulling the company apart.
▪ A nation that might disagree with its leaders at times, but will pull together for its nation's sake.
▪ But I get the feeling we are beginning to work against each other instead of pulling together.
▪ Robust white zips bite tightly pulling together taut panels of see-through plastic.
▪ Work-inhibited children have the best chance to grow out of their insufficiency when parents and teachers pull together in a positive direction.
up
▪ Peter pulled up, but to his horror the glider chose to pull up as its method of collision avoidance.
▪ I pulled up higher than the rest of the flight and made small, quick turns left and right.
▪ The woman would pull up the sheet to her neck.
▪ Others chimed in, saying those who have it made are pulling up the ladder on those less fortunate.
▪ He now pulled up a chair and, turning it about, sat on it, his elbows resting on the back.
▪ He pulls up a chair as she starts another game.
▪ He pulled up, climbed out, and removed the plastic cone that had kept the space free.
▪ The 1P signaled me to pull up the collective.
■ NOUN
car
▪ Outside, a car had just pulled into the driveway.
▪ I heard a car pull up in front of the apartment and heard the door slam shut.
▪ Back at work the next day, the cars may pull up to docking stations and pump electricity into offices or factories.
▪ Nine-stone Deirdre, 39, halted the driverless car by pulling on the door handle.
▪ The car pulled up and one of the policemen called to Alvin to come over.
▪ I heard a bunch of cars pulling up and looked out the window.
chair
▪ He pulled back her chair and Evelyn sat down, her shoulder touching his arm for a second.
▪ I pulled my chair close and put my arm around her shoulder.
▪ I pulled a chair away from the table.
▪ Anyway, I pull up a chair by the bed and say hello.
▪ She pulled a wooden chair across in front of him and sat sideways on it, leaning on the back, looking at him.
▪ I long to pull out a chair and tell her that she can rest as long as she likes.
▪ Nevertheless, he pulled out a chair for her.
▪ Henry pulled a chair out for me and then poured me some coffee while I looked around.
curtain
▪ Athelstan pulled the curtain back and wrinkled his nose at the smell.
▪ When you come right down to it, I neither pulled the curtain nor turned off the light.
▪ He pulled back a curtain revealing a brick wall close outside the window.
▪ Squirt pulled back the curtain and went out.
▪ The effort of pulling back the curtain brought a renewed stab of pain.
▪ At the top she would lead him into a booth and pull the curtain shut behind him.
▪ He pulled back one curtain and looked at his watch.
face
▪ His hand was warm; he pulled her face to his face with his warm hand.
▪ He told me that the oxygen mask had pulled away from my face some, and that I was probably just blacking out.
▪ She pulled a face at the speaker.
▪ I wear sweats and my hair is pulled from my face with a rubber band.
▪ At the end, she pulls her face into a lion.
▪ Then she pulled a rueful face.
▪ She gasped and looked over her shoulder, pulling her face together.
▪ He would never ask her why she was pulling faces, in case it encouraged her to pull worse ones.
gun
▪ But he ducks, wrenches at my fingers, and pulls his gun hand free.
▪ Then, slowly pulling my own gun away from his head, I continued walking until I was directly opposite him.
▪ She said that, as the officer felt threatened, he pulled his gun and fired off a warning shot.
▪ He pulled out a huge gun, snugged inside a light tan shoulder holster.
▪ It's not every day a young woman pulls a gun on a burglar.
▪ Confronting two young men outside a Vista apartment building, 18-year-old Lane pulled a gun.
▪ We featured dramatic pictures of two of the masked boys pulling a replica gun on our front and centre pages.
▪ Many horses died of starvation, and most of those that survived grew too weak for use in pulling the lightest guns.
hair
▪ Her blonde hair was pulled back into a smooth chignon and tied with a yellow silk bow.
▪ Tom kept fooling with my hair, pulling out one pin after another.
▪ Her long black hair was pulled back in a pony-tail.
▪ Next, her long red hair was pulled so hard she felt as if it was going to come out by the roots.
▪ Her hair was pulled back from her face and tied in a bun.
leg
▪ Charles Greenwich London Are you pulling my leg?
▪ Foster pulled his legs back from the fire.
▪ Cross the ankles, then try to pull the legs apart, using the strength from the legs to work against themselves.
▪ Standing at the kitchen counter, whining baby pulling on my legs.
▪ Then pull each leg away in opposite directions as far as it will go.
▪ Sure, but-you think he was pulling my leg?
▪ Turn away, swing the arms and club and then pull the body and legs through.
▪ Then Elmer gathers up the reins, leans back, and pulls his legs back, toes down in the stirrups.
lever
▪ Then Tony pulled the lever and the wheel began to slow down.
▪ They are let, loose by a man in a Plexiglas bubble controlling every-thing by pulling levers.
▪ She pulled a lever at the base of the cage.
▪ The blacks went in, pulled the lever, came out, and got their chickens.
▪ Amin pulled one of the levers and a noise came from inside.
▪ Complete the lace message - pull the selected lever and move the lace carriage to the right.
▪ Card No. 3 has a new instruction: you will pull the selector lever on occasions and no needles will be selected.
▪ Angalo pulled one of the levers back a bit.
muscle
▪ It tends to go on strike by pulling a muscle or twisting a joint.
▪ These help reduce the risk of pulled muscles.
▪ Naked, Julia stretched under the sheet, stretched so hard she pulled her stomach muscles to their full length.
▪ It came 11 days ago, when Ramon Martinez pulled a groin muscle and had to leave a game in Chicago.
▪ I was still at the crease, but having pulled a muscle in my leg I was batting with a runner.
▪ Washington pulled the muscle while covering Galloway in the third quarter.
▪ On the Thursday Luis Mendoza pulled a groin muscle, so Luke had to take his place.
▪ Slowly and smoothly pull your abdominal muscles in tight, keeping your chest and thighs in contact with the floor.
plug
▪ The banks can pull the plug.
▪ Newt Gingrich pulled the plug on ethics reform.
▪ Practically, the banks are not wishing to pull the plug.
▪ Then, on March 28, 1980, with no warning to the workers, Harvester pulled the plug.
▪ Mathie was looking for work after he decided to pull the plug on the 20-year-old classic emporium.
▪ They studied referees' reports and may recommend pulling the plug again after the final at Wembley on March 27.
▪ The whirlpool appears reliably whenever we pull the plug.
punch
▪ Nizan generally spoke his mind and refused to pull his punches.
▪ It also ended speculation that Cuomo might pull his punches in criticizing Clinton on the welfare issue.
▪ From the pulpit Rev Paul Andrianatos pulls no punches.
▪ Greenberg's judgment pulls no punches.
▪ That is why the transport white paper pulled its punches and proposed more road-building.
▪ They never pull any punches the way happiness does.
▪ The backdrop of 1950s Harlem is violent and sinister and the direction pulls few punches.
rug
▪ So the Government helped out by pulling the rug from under savers.
▪ He reached into a backpack and pulled out a small rug and put it out in front of me.
▪ It rather pulls the rug from under all those James Bond films.
▪ Congressional Republicans are tempted to pull the rug out from under Bill Clinton wherever possible.
▪ It snuggles up to something familiar then pulls the rug out and dares you to keep your balance.
station
▪ He pulled into the station car park, slammed on the brakes, and made no effort to get out of the van.
▪ I pulled into a gas station this morning.
▪ Some one uncoupled that car at Cartier and rigged some way of pulling it out of the station into the darkness before releasing it.
▪ Forty-five minutes later, the Aries-1B lunar carrier pulled away from the Station.
▪ It was like the noise made by a steam locomotive pulling out from a station.
▪ Back at work the next day, the cars may pull up to docking stations and pump electricity into offices or factories.
▪ Fifteen minutes later the locomotive will pull out of the station hauling an express for London.
string
▪ But if he was the puppet, who was pulling the strings and to what dance?
▪ He pulled strings to get the two of them into a university.
▪ Offshore a small tug belched black smoke as she struggled to pull a string of barges.
▪ This, of course, leaves Karadzic amply able to pull strings from backstage.
▪ Mrs Naulls was in Sunningdale because her son Stanley was a Hilderbridge councillor and had pulled strings.
▪ She, who had always pulled the strings, to have found herself in this position.
train
▪ Charlotte walked slowly on to the platform and waited for her train to pull in.
▪ The train pulled out and I never saw the town again.
▪ The platform is brightly lit and filled with people waiting for the train to pull in.
▪ As I burst on to the empty platform, the train starts to pull away.
▪ When the train pulled into Los Angeles, black passengers could sit anywhere they wanted.
▪ He was so near, he could see the trains pulling in and out.
trick
▪ A professional golfer tries to pull off a confidence trick against his own body.
▪ And the rooms pull a few surrealistic tricks with their architecture.
▪ Supposing Gesner pulled a trick, or she fell over.
▪ If he pulls that trick, the finals are within his and the Lakers' reach.
▪ Old Rudolf being smart enough to pull a trick like that!
▪ Then, as the United States Army neared, the well-mobilized army of Young pulled a trick.
▪ The veterans can pull off a few tricks, too.
trigger
▪ Without adequate built-in safeguards, there will be other Susan Allens who will pull the trigger before they cry for help.
▪ He checked that the breech was empty of bullets, then pumped the rifle up and pulled the trigger.
▪ But never mind, though their blue-veined old hands might be trembling their fingers could still pull a trigger.
▪ Jackson is convinced Ray pulled the trigger.
▪ He had tried several times at a local shooting range but he couldn't bring himself to pull the trigger.
▪ She put the barrel of a pistol in her mouth and pulled the trigger.
▪ He pulled the trigger but the chamber was empty.
▪ Now we need to pull the trigger.
wool
▪ You can not pull the wool over Hooper's eyes.
▪ But it's not easy to pull the wool over our eyes.
▪ He found out we had been pulling the wool over his eyes for quite some time.
▪ And to think she'd pulled the wool over Miss Phoebe's eyes!
▪ Then put the wool around the needle and pull the wool through both of the stitches.
▪ You can't pull the wool over my eyes like that.
▪ There are people who can pull the wool over peoples' eyes.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
be drawn/pulled/picked out of the/a hat
be tearing/pulling your hair out
▪ Anyone else would be tearing his hair out, confronted by a pack of jabbering foreigners, but does Feargal?
▪ I was pulling my hair out.
draw/pull in your horns
▪ However, it now plans to draw in its horns in anticipation of declining demand for farm machinery by cutting back production.
not pull any/your punches
pull a stunt
▪ He says he loves his kids, but when he pulls a stunt like this it makes me wonder.
pull out all the stops
▪ Fred's pulling out all the stops for his daughter's wedding.
▪ If we pull out all the stops we should still be able to meet our deadline.
▪ They gave me a great leaving party - they really pulled out all the stops.
▪ CafÄ Pinot is pulling out all the stops with its four-course aphrodisiac menu.
▪ Judith Milner, a Healthcare consultant from Leeds pulls out all the stops when it comes to selling the range of services.
▪ Lott pulled out all the stops.
▪ Miss Pickering's pulled out all the stops this time.
▪ Soap bosses pulled out all the stops so football fever could infect Albert Square.
▪ There were occasions when Bloomsbury House pulled out all the stops on behalf of children who were clearly gifted - usually in the arts.
▪ We pulled out all the stops and gave the company a response in record time.
pull rank (on sb)
▪ She never acted like an authority figure or pulled rank on me.
▪ He pulled rank and went to bed at half past eleven, leaving me on for the late-night drinks.
▪ I do not enjoy pulling rank, but I do not tolerate unmanly gossip and back-biting.
▪ In the end, Naughtie pulled rank, and took on the task himself.
▪ Vi had the situation under control but the chief could, and probably would, pull rank.
pull sth to bits
▪ Jahsaxa's pals had virtually pulled hir to bits.
pull the plug (on sth)
▪ But the firm pulled the plug on the scheme last week, leaving McAlpine fuming.
▪ George Bush pulled the plug out here fairly early.
▪ Mir guys, pull the plug.
▪ Practically, the banks are not wishing to pull the plug.
▪ The banks can pull the plug.
▪ Then, on March 28, 1980, with no warning to the workers, Harvester pulled the plug.
▪ They studied referees' reports and may recommend pulling the plug again after the final at Wembley on March 27.
▪ When the gap gets to two seconds or less, I pull the plug.
pull the rug (out) from under sb/sb's feet
pull the wool over sb's eyes
▪ Don't try and pull the wool over my eyes - I can tell you've been smoking.
▪ The politicians are just trying to pull the wool over voters' eyes again.
▪ But it's not easy to pull the wool over our eyes.
▪ He found out we had been pulling the wool over his eyes for quite some time.
▪ The only conclusion a consumer can reach is that Microsoft managed to pull the wool over the eyes of millions of users.
▪ There are people who can pull the wool over peoples' eyes.
▪ You can't pull the wool over my eyes like that.
▪ You can not pull the wool over Hooper's eyes.
pull up stakes
▪ Our family pulled up stakes every few years when Dad was in the Army.
▪ Moreover, when a business pulls up stakes or downsizes, an entire program can wither overnight.
▪ So, he pulled up stakes and moved to Allen County to oversee a farm.
▪ Sometimes, staying put is a greater act of courage than pulling up stakes and starting anew.
pull up the drawbridge
pull your socks up
▪ Maybe we needed to pull our socks up and we are trying to do just that.
▪ With 16 games to go Oxford have still got time to pull their socks up.
▪ You're not exactly a young lad any more so you've got to pull your socks up.
pull your weight
▪ If you don't start pulling your weight around here, you're fired.
▪ All members were expected to pull their weight.
▪ Be firm, and tell him that he must either pull his weight or leave.
▪ For the average business, pulses and linseed didn't pull their weight.
▪ He didn't pull his weight, but knew how to keep it from the consultants.
▪ He just didn't pull his weight domestically.
▪ Some members of this class haven't been pulling their weight.
▪ The superiors counted on the new managers to pull their weight in contributing to the superiors' agendas.
▪ You subs are not pulling your weight.
pull/bring sb up short
▪ A moment later, realising she was teetering on the brink of self-pity, she brought herself up short.
▪ A moment later, though, and she was bringing herself up short.
▪ But Blue brings himself up short, realizing that they have nothing really to do with Black.
▪ However, never bring a preclear up short on this material.
▪ She has a red face and a manner that pulls people up short.
▪ This brings us up short at the outset of our study.
pull/get your finger out
▪ You could easily finish your essay if you just sit down and pull your finger out!
▪ So, come on shoe companies, pull your finger out, deliver the goods you advertise.
pull/haul yourself up by your bootstraps
pull/rip/tear sb/sth to pieces
▪ And having got under them, he can't half tear them to pieces.
▪ Brandon Thomas opted to unveil his Aunt away from London fearful that the capital's theatre critics would tear it to pieces.
▪ He was thrown from his chariot and his horses tore him to pieces and devoured him.
▪ I had been given the power to obliterate, to steal a body from its grave and tear it to pieces.
▪ If Hyde returns while I am writing this confession, he will tear it to pieces to annoy me.
▪ They will tear you to pieces.
▪ We are lost, for they will surely tear us to pieces with their sharp claws.
tug/tear/pull at sb's heartstrings
▪ It pulls at the heartstrings of every agent out there to see a young lady or anyone jeopardized by these conditions.
▪ That night the little creature did not stop crying and its pitiful little squeak tore at Aggie's heartstrings.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ Pull the chair nearer to the fire.
▪ a tractor pulling a plough
▪ a train pulling 64 boxcars
▪ Bagert is expected to pull just enough votes to win.
▪ Crawford had been ordered to take a day's rest after pulling a leg muscle.
▪ Don't start pulling yet - wait till I say go.
▪ Everyone took hold of the rope and pulled hard.
▪ He pulled her towards him and kissed her.
▪ I pulled a muscle trying to move the piano into the apartment.
▪ Sampras dropped out of the tournament after pulling a calf muscle.
▪ She's going to have her wisdom teeth pulled.
▪ She raised the gun and pulled the trigger.
▪ She was angry enough to pull her kids from the school.
▪ The car seems to be pulling to the left.
▪ The Queen's carriage was pulled by two white horses.
▪ The team was pulled at the last minute.
▪ You need to pull this lever to start the machine.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ Eventually a farmer on a tractor pulled up.
▪ He pulled up for the jumper and it rolled nicely in the rim.
▪ I can hear him pulling on his goddamn cigarette.
▪ I put my hand into my jacket pocket, felt for the pack, and pulled one out.
▪ If you can pull the paper out easily, the seals probably need replacing.
▪ Marcus then undid Patrick's pyjama jacket and started to try to pull it off, then decided not to.
▪ That bloke who keeps pulling his double set of teeth out had pinched the lot.
II.nounCOLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADJECTIVE
gravitational
▪ As they were collapsing, the gravitational pull of matter outside these regions might start them rotating slightly.
▪ After a while we are aware of a deviation, the gravitational pull of an unseen planet.
▪ Spring Tides - Moon and Sun in opposition, with combined gravitational pull. 4.
▪ As if this were an apex of this island, its source of gravitational pull.
▪ The complete system involved includes a flat surface - a table, perhaps - and a steady downward gravitational pull.
▪ Such a situation creates a gravitational pull toward contractual arrangements and a corresponding push away from employment in the traditional sense.
▪ What, even so, of the required gravitational pull?
▪ These counteract the tendency for the body to contract under its own gravitational pull.
magnetic
▪ The newly created Reclamation Service exerted a magnetic pull on the best engineering graduates in the country.
strong
▪ The closeness was as strong as the pull of their own lives; they lost the pain of individuality within its protection.
▪ There was also a strong pull toward change.
▪ Why does their melancholy sport exert such a strong pull on my heart?
▪ They immediately began to produce stronger pulls than me at a slower, more measured speed.
▪ York had a stronger pull than smaller towns and attracted migrants over much longer distances than most places.
■ NOUN
ring
▪ Lucker pulls the ring pull and extends it to him.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
be drawn/pulled/picked out of the/a hat
draw/pull in your horns
▪ However, it now plans to draw in its horns in anticipation of declining demand for farm machinery by cutting back production.
not pull any/your punches
pull out all the stops
▪ Fred's pulling out all the stops for his daughter's wedding.
▪ If we pull out all the stops we should still be able to meet our deadline.
▪ They gave me a great leaving party - they really pulled out all the stops.
▪ CafÄ Pinot is pulling out all the stops with its four-course aphrodisiac menu.
▪ Judith Milner, a Healthcare consultant from Leeds pulls out all the stops when it comes to selling the range of services.
▪ Lott pulled out all the stops.
▪ Miss Pickering's pulled out all the stops this time.
▪ Soap bosses pulled out all the stops so football fever could infect Albert Square.
▪ There were occasions when Bloomsbury House pulled out all the stops on behalf of children who were clearly gifted - usually in the arts.
▪ We pulled out all the stops and gave the company a response in record time.
pull rank (on sb)
▪ She never acted like an authority figure or pulled rank on me.
▪ He pulled rank and went to bed at half past eleven, leaving me on for the late-night drinks.
▪ I do not enjoy pulling rank, but I do not tolerate unmanly gossip and back-biting.
▪ In the end, Naughtie pulled rank, and took on the task himself.
▪ Vi had the situation under control but the chief could, and probably would, pull rank.
pull sth to bits
▪ Jahsaxa's pals had virtually pulled hir to bits.
pull up stakes
▪ Our family pulled up stakes every few years when Dad was in the Army.
▪ Moreover, when a business pulls up stakes or downsizes, an entire program can wither overnight.
▪ So, he pulled up stakes and moved to Allen County to oversee a farm.
▪ Sometimes, staying put is a greater act of courage than pulling up stakes and starting anew.
pull up the drawbridge
pull your socks up
▪ Maybe we needed to pull our socks up and we are trying to do just that.
▪ With 16 games to go Oxford have still got time to pull their socks up.
▪ You're not exactly a young lad any more so you've got to pull your socks up.
pull your weight
▪ If you don't start pulling your weight around here, you're fired.
▪ All members were expected to pull their weight.
▪ Be firm, and tell him that he must either pull his weight or leave.
▪ For the average business, pulses and linseed didn't pull their weight.
▪ He didn't pull his weight, but knew how to keep it from the consultants.
▪ He just didn't pull his weight domestically.
▪ Some members of this class haven't been pulling their weight.
▪ The superiors counted on the new managers to pull their weight in contributing to the superiors' agendas.
▪ You subs are not pulling your weight.
pull/bring sb up short
▪ A moment later, realising she was teetering on the brink of self-pity, she brought herself up short.
▪ A moment later, though, and she was bringing herself up short.
▪ But Blue brings himself up short, realizing that they have nothing really to do with Black.
▪ However, never bring a preclear up short on this material.
▪ She has a red face and a manner that pulls people up short.
▪ This brings us up short at the outset of our study.
pull/get your finger out
▪ You could easily finish your essay if you just sit down and pull your finger out!
▪ So, come on shoe companies, pull your finger out, deliver the goods you advertise.
pull/haul yourself up by your bootstraps
pull/rip/tear sb/sth to pieces
▪ And having got under them, he can't half tear them to pieces.
▪ Brandon Thomas opted to unveil his Aunt away from London fearful that the capital's theatre critics would tear it to pieces.
▪ He was thrown from his chariot and his horses tore him to pieces and devoured him.
▪ I had been given the power to obliterate, to steal a body from its grave and tear it to pieces.
▪ If Hyde returns while I am writing this confession, he will tear it to pieces to annoy me.
▪ They will tear you to pieces.
▪ We are lost, for they will surely tear us to pieces with their sharp claws.
tug/tear/pull at sb's heartstrings
▪ It pulls at the heartstrings of every agent out there to see a young lady or anyone jeopardized by these conditions.
▪ That night the little creature did not stop crying and its pitiful little squeak tore at Aggie's heartstrings.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ Give the rope a good pull.
▪ I couldn't remember where the pull was to open the parachute.
▪ I took one last pull from the water jug.
▪ She gave a gentle pull on the reins, and the horse stopped.
▪ That door sticks a bit - give it a good pull.
▪ The pull of the Bavarian countryside is strong.
▪ The former Senator has a lot of pull with the Republicans in Congress.
▪ The moon's pull on the Earth's oceans creates the tides.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ After about a year I gave in to the pull and discovered that fatherhood has made me a much more serious person.
▪ An average student, he felt the pull and excitement of the Army, so he left college to enlist in 1942.
▪ Another pull for ten minutes or so brought me up on to the summit, where I sat down to have my lunch.
▪ As they were collapsing, the gravitational pull of matter outside these regions might start them rotating slightly.
▪ Specifically, investors should diversify with quality stocks and continue to invest for the long pull.
▪ That pull does not usually create as much immediate conflict for them.
▪ The final pull of day is seduced away to another gathering.