pull up

See also: pullup and pull-up

English

Pronunciation

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Verb

pull up (third-person singular simple present pulls up, present participle pulling up, simple past and past participle pulled up)

1. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see pull,‎ up.
   1. (transitive, intransitive) To lift upwards or vertically.

      I pull up the lever when I want to make my car go into first gear.

   2. To pull forward.

      Pull up a bench and have a seat.

      Pull the car up a little so you don't block his driveway.

      Pull up a little so you don't block his driveway.

   3. (intransitive, aviation) To raise the nose of an aircraft.

      Terrain ahead! Pull up!

2. (idiomatic) To fetch for display on a screen.

   Pull up that website for me; it sounds quite interesting.

3. (idiomatic) Drive close towards something, especially a curb.

   Pull up to that curb slowly; you don't want to scratch that other car.

   • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 5, in The Celebrity:

     We expressed our readiness, and in ten minutes were in the station wagon, rolling rapidly down the long drive, for it was then after nine. […] As we reached the lodge we heard the whistle, and we backed up against one side of the platform as the train pulled up at the other.

   • 1932, Delos W. Lovelace, King Kong, published 1965, page 12:

     "Taxi," he called. And when one pulled up to the curb with screeching brakes he ordered, "The nearest restaurant."

   • 2009, Kesha, Tik Tok

     I'm talking pedicure on our toes, toes / Trying on all our clothes, clothes / Boys blowing up our phones, phones / Drop-topping, playing our favorite CD / Pulling up to the parties / Trying to get a little bit tipsy.

4. (informal, transitive) To admonish or criticize (a person) for their actions.
   • 2014, April De Angelis, Wild East:

     My coursework began to suffer and my parents pulled me up on it and said we are not paying for you to get off your head every night.

Derived terms

• pull up on

Translations

lift vertically

• Esperanto: kuspi (eo)
• French: soulever (fr)
• Irish: tarraing suas

• Japanese: 引き上げる (hikiageru)
• Maori: kōwhiti
• Spanish: alzar (es), levantar (es)
• Portuguese: puxar para cima