Antonyms for pull together


Grammar : Verb
Spell : pool
Phonetic Transcription : pÊŠl


Definition of pull together

Origin :
  • c.1300, "to move forcibly by pulling, to drag," from Old English pullian "to pluck off (wool), to draw out," of unknown origin, perhaps related to Low German pulen "remove the shell or husk," Frisian pûlje "to shell, husk," Middle Dutch polen "to peel, strip," Icelandic pula "work hard."
  • Early 14c. as "to pick, pull off, gather" (fruit, flowers, berries, leaves, petals, etc.); mid-14c. as "to uproot, pull up" (of teeth, weeds, etc.). Sense of "to draw, attract" (to oneself) is from c.1400; sense of "to pluck at with the fingers" is from c.1400. Meaning "tear to pieces" is mid-15c. By late 16c. it had replaced draw in these senses. Related: Pulled; pulling.
  • Common in slang usages 19c.-20c.; Bartlett (1859) has to pull foot "walk fast; run;" pull it "to run." To pull up "check a course of action" is from 1808, figurative of the lifting of the reins in horse-riding. To pull (someone's) chain in figurative sense is from 1974, perhaps on the notion of a captive animal; the expression was also used for "to contact" (someone), on the notion of the chain that operates a signaling mechanism.
  • To pull (someone's) leg is from 1882, perhaps on notion of "playfully tripping" (cf. pull the long bow "exaggerate," 1830, and pulling someone's leg also sometimes was described as a way to awaken a sleeping person in a railway compartment, ship's berth, etc.). Thornton's "American Glossary" (1912) has pull (n.) "a jest" (to have a pull at (someone)), which it identifies as "local" and illustrates with an example from the Massachusetts "Spy" of May 21, 1817, which identifies it as "a Georgian phrase." To pull (one's) punches is from 1920 in pugilism, from 1921 figuratively. To pull in "arrive" (1892) and pull out "depart" (1868) are from the railroads.
  • To pull (something) off "accomplish, succeed at" is originally in sporting, "to win the prize money" (1870). To pull (something) on (someone) is from 1916; to pull (something) out of one's ass is Army slang from 1970s. To pull rank is from 1919; to pull the rug from under (someone) figuratively is from 1946.
  • As in play ball : verb cooperate
  • As in synchronize : verb coordinate
  • As in systematize : verb put in order
  • As in tidy : verb make neat and orderly
  • As in unify : verb unite
  • As in unite : verb combine; join together
  • As in systemize : verb order
  • As in trig : verb tidy
  • As in cooperate : verb aid, assist
  • As in coordinate : verb match, relate
Example sentences :
  • They've got to learn that they are a crowd—and can't get anywhere at all until all pull together.
  • Extract from : « The Harbor » by Ernest Poole
  • For success, all must pull together, and the rope must be kept straight and taut.
  • Extract from : « Through St. Dunstan's to Light » by James H. Rawlinson
  • What a madness it was to think that she and I could pull together.
  • Extract from : « A Sheaf of Corn » by Mary E. Mann
  • The act of rowing with oars; as, "Pull the starboard oars," "Pull together."
  • Extract from : « The Sailor's Word-Book » by William Henry Smyth
  • And all the brothers are capable men, men who are able to pull together.
  • Extract from : « A Little Girl in Old New York » by Amanda Millie Douglas
  • Sun and moon then pull together, and we get the highest, or spring tides (Fig. 232).
  • Extract from : « How it Works » by Archibald Williams
  • We need all the men we can depend on, and I want you and Vandersee to pull together.
  • Extract from : « Gold Out of Celebes » by Aylward Edward Dingle
  • Every man in this room is a Slav, and we Slavs must pull together or we are lost.
  • Extract from : « A Son of the Immortals » by Louis Tracy
  • Mebbe we'll all pull together for the other shore before this night's over.
  • Extract from : « The Brighton Boys in the Trenches » by James R. Driscoll
  • Let us pull together all our days, for strife brings barrenness.
  • Extract from : « Talks To Farmers » by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Synonyms for pull together

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019