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to pull

to pull

∞ 6.6
To do something dishonest or unfair to gain an advantage
  • verb
  • /pʊl/
  • Informal
: hacer una jugarreta
  • Looks like you pulled it off.
  • pull the plug
  • pull the rug out
  • pull a gun

I think an immense con has been pulled on the American people.

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Examples

  • If a homework pass was pulled, the entire class was exempt from the work.

    Academic text (1991)
  • But to pull it off, we're gonna need a pretty sweet diversion.

  • Nobody really thought he could pull it off. "But apparently he has," Ross said.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • I think an immense con has been pulled on the American people.

  • I think an immense con has been pulled on the American people.

  • That's going to be difficult to pull off, I would suspect, given the short notice.

  • But to pull it off, we're gonna need a pretty sweet diversion.

Synonyms

to commit
vsto pull
∞ 3.3

To do something illegal or wrong

is less formal and can mean a surprising or dishonest act
to perpetrate
vsto pull
78 8.4

To do a harmful or illegal act

is more informal and often implies surprise or trickery
to pull a fast one
vsto pull
  • Informal
12 8.3

To trick someone in a clever way so they do not notice

is a general carried out act that may be dishonest or disapproved
to pull a fast one on
vsto pull
  • Informal
6 8.1

To trick someone to gain an advantage

is a broader action and may not aim to gain advantage
to pull that stunt
vsto pull
  • Informal
3 8.1

Do something foolish that shocks or angers other people

is often about dishonesty or disapproval rather than mere foolishness

Antonyms

To act honestly and directly without tricking others

Idioms

19 5.2

Do everything possible to make something succeed

17 4.1

To tell someone something that is not true to make them laugh

12 8.3

To trick someone in a clever way so they do not notice

To trick someone by hiding the truth

to pull a face
  • Informal
3 5.5

Make a face to show dislike or discomfort

Find a surprising way to solve a problem at the last moment

to pull teeth
  • Informal
2 7.5

To have a lot of trouble getting someone to give an answer or help

1 5.3

Make people feel deep sadness or pity

1 9.9

Trying to meet someone to start a romantic or sexual relationship

1 4.7

Cheer for a team or person who is expected to lose

To tease someone by saying something that is not true as a joke

to pull your pud
  • Offensive
1 9.9

To waste time instead of working

Save someone from a difficult situation at the last moment

To promise help again and again and then take it away at the last moment

Make your situation better by working hard without help

1 9.9

To make a big embarrassing mistake that others notice

9.9

To make a silly mistake that makes people laugh at you

To become less confident and not try as hard after problems

To start working hard after not doing much

Be quieter and more careful about what you say

3.9

To do your fair share of work in a group

Make up ideas quickly without preparing or checking facts

To suddenly stop helping someone, leaving them in a difficult situation

8.4

To mention being a woman or man to avoid blame and get sympathy

To succeed and then stop others from getting the same chances

9.1

To tell a story in a way that makes what happened sound bigger or not true

To start trying much harder after being lazy

Phrasal Verbs

∞ 2.7

To take something out of a place, often with effort

392 4.1

To manage to do something difficult or unexpected

347 2.8

To move a vehicle to the side of the road and stop

320 3.4

To move yourself and things backward from a place, person, or situation

265 2.8

To stop or slow down a vehicle at a place

228 3.4

To stop being involved in an activity or agreement

195 2.7

To take something off from where it is attached

155 3.2

To take something out, often with effort, for example weeds or hidden facts

153 3.5

To move away from people or a place to create space

151 3.2

Leave an activity or agreement you had joined

149 3.2

To bring something or someone down from a higher place

Gather people or things and organize them to reach a goal

To secretly use people you know to get what you want

To stop something from going on by removing support like money

68 3.5

To attract people or attention

To survive a serious illness or danger, often with help from others, and start to get better

47 3.1

To arrive at a station and stop there

42 4.4

To make a person or group stop taking part in something

39 3.2

To break something into pieces by hand

39 3.0

To stand or sit up straight to look more confident

25 4.9

Decide to do something after thinking about it for a while

to pull for
  • Informal
24 4.2

Support someone in a competition or hard situation

22 3.9

To tug gently with your fingers again and again, often when nervous

19 4.1

To earn money from work or business

to pull punches
  • Informal
17 6.7

To hold back criticism or strong action to avoid hurting someone

17 3.6

To gather information or things from different places

Move a handle to make a machine start or stop

13 3.4

To move into a leading position in a race or competition

10 3.0

To move something by dragging it with effort

Hurt a muscle by stretching or straining it too much

6 8.1

To trick someone to gain an advantage

5 7.2

Leave home and move to a new place

5 6.3

Make funny faces to amuse or annoy people

To stop taking part in an agreement you already agreed to

3 8.1

Do something foolish that shocks or angers other people

3 3.8

To demolish a building so it is flat on the ground

3 7.4

Produce a surprising idea that solves a difficult problem

to pull quote
  • Literature
2 4.6

To take a short line from a text and show it separately to get attention

2 4.4

To make a rope or cord tight by stretching it so it is not loose

To stop suddenly before you expect it

to pull wires
  • Informal
1 9.3

To secretly get people to do what you want for personal gain

Close the cover on a window or door by moving it down

1 5.5

To drive or move something around without a clear purpose

Drive a car to the side of the road and stop

Get control of your feelings and calm down after being upset

9.9

Make up facts with no proof, often as a weak excuse

To arrive suddenly to confront someone, often in a challenging way

Compounds

8 3.9

An exercise where you hang from a bar and pull your chin above it

The pull that makes things fall toward Earth or another large body

pull quote
  • Literature
2 4.1

A short quotation from an article shown separately to draw attention

1 3.8

A paved area beside a main road where cars can stop briefly

leg-pull
  • Archaic
1 7.1

A joke that tries to make someone believe a false story for fun

1 4.7

A chain with a handle that you use to turn on a light or flush a toilet

demand-pull inflation
  • Specialized
1 7.7

A rise in prices when people want to buy more things than before

pull-up
  • UK
1 9.5

A small cafe by the road where truck drivers stop to eat and rest

pull-in
  • UK
1 6.5

A roadside place like a cafe where drivers stop to rest and eat

cost-pull inflation
  • Specialized
7.0

A rise in general prices caused by higher production costs like wages and raw materials

pull-through
  • Specialized
8.4

A cloth on a cord with a weight used to clean a gun barrel

How Serious

to perpetrate
78 8.4
to commit
∞ 3.3
to pull
  • Informal
∞ 6.6
to perform
∞ 1.3
to do
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

pull infinitive
pulled past
pulled past participle
pulling present participle
pulls third person singular

Etymology

Pull can mean to carry out an act because of the idea 'to make something happen' from old English pullen, so to pull a trick is to produce or cause that action.