Pinch vs Pull - What's the difference?

In slang|lang=en terms the difference between pinch and pull

is that pinch is (slang) to arrest or capture while pull is (slang) the act of drinking.

As verbs the difference between pinch and pull

is that pinch is to squeeze a small amount of a person's skin and flesh, making it hurt while pull is to apply a force to (an object) so that it comes toward the person or thing applying the force.

As nouns the difference between pinch and pull

is that pinch is the action of squeezing a small amount of a person's skin and flesh, making it hurt while pull is an act of pulling (applying force).

pinch

English

Verb

(es)

To squeeze a small amount of a person's skin and flesh, making it hurt.

The children were scolded for pinching each other.

This shoe pinches my foot.

To steal, usually of something almost trivial or inconsequential.

Someone has pinched my handkerchief!

* {{quote-news

, year=2012 , date=May 13 , author=Alistair Magowan , title=Sunderland 0-1 Man Utd , work=BBC Sport citation , page= , passage=Then, as the Sunderland fans' cheers bellowed around the stadium, United's title bid was over when it became apparent City had pinched a last-gasp winner to seal their first title in 44 years.}}

(slang) To arrest or capture.

(horticulture) To cut shoots]] or [[bud, buds of a plant in order to shape the plant, or to improve its yield.

(nautical) To sail so close-hauled that the sails begin to flutter.

(hunting) To take hold; to grip, as a dog does.

(obsolete) To be niggardly or covetous.

(Gower)

* Franklin

the wretch whom avarice bids to pinch and spare

To seize; to grip; to bite; said of animals.

* Chapman

He [the hound] pinched and pulled her down.

(figurative) To cramp; to straiten; to oppress; to starve.

to be pinched for money

* Sir Walter Raleigh

want of room pinching a whole nation

To move, as a railroad car, by prying the wheels with a pinch.

Noun

(es)

The action of squeezing a small amount of a person's skin and flesh, making it hurt.

A small amount of powder or granules, such that the amount could be held between fingertip and thumb tip.

An awkward situation of some kind (especially money or social) which is difficult to escape.

* 1955 , edition, ISBN 0553249592, page 171:

It took nerve and muscle both to carry the body out and down the stairs to the lower hall, but he damn well had to get it out of his place and away from his door, and any of those four could have done it in a pinch', and it sure was a ' pinch .

An organic herbal smoke additive.

Derived terms

* feel the pinch * in a pinch * at a pinch * pinchy * take with a pinch of salt

Descendants

* Japanese: (pinchi)

pull

English

Verb

(en verb)

to apply a force to (an object) so that it comes toward the person or thing applying the force

* Bible, Genesis viii. 9

He put forth his hand and pulled her in.

* Shakespeare

Ne'er pull your hat upon your brows.

To gather with the hand, or by drawing toward oneself; to pluck.

to pull''' fruit from a tree; to '''pull''' flax; to '''pull a finch

to apply a force such that an object comes toward the person or thing applying the force

You're going to have to pull harder to get that cork out of the bottle.

To attract or net; to pull in.

* Marcella Ridlen Ray, Changing and Unchanging Face of United States Civil Society

Television, a favored source of news and information, pulls the largest share of advertising monies.

To draw apart; to tear; to rend.

* Bible, Lam. iii. 11

He hath turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces; he hath made me desolate.

(ambitransitive, UK, Ireland, slang) to persuade (someone) to have sex with one

I pulled at the club last night.

He's pulled that bird over there.

to remove (something), especially from public circulation or availability

Each day, they pulled the old bread and set out fresh loaves.

(informal) to do or perform

He regularly pulls 12-hour days, sometimes 14.

You'll be sent home if you pull another stunt like that.

to retrieve or generate for use

I'll have to pull a part number for that.

* 2006 , Michael Bellomo, Joel Elad, How to Sell Anything on Amazon...and Make a Fortune!

They'll go through their computer system and pull a report of all your order fulfillment records for the time period you specify.

to toss a frisbee with the intention of launching the disc across the length of a field

to row

* 1874 , (Marcus Clarke), (For the Term of His Natural Life) Chapter VI

It had been a sort of race hitherto, and the rowers, with set teeth and compressed lips, had pulled stroke for stroke.

To strain (a muscle, tendon, ligament, etc.).

(video games, ambitransitive) To draw (a hostile non-player character) into combat, or toward or away from some location or target.

* 2003 April 9, "Richard Lawson" (username), " Monual's Willful Ignorance", in alt.games.everquest, Usenet:

…we had to clear a long hallway, run up half way, pull the boss mob to us, and engage.

* 2004 October 18, "Stush" (username), " Re: focus pull", in alt.games.dark-age-of-camelot, Usenet:

Basically buff pet, have it pull lots of mobs, shield pet, chain heal pet, have your aoe casters finish off hurt mobs once pet gets good aggro.

* 2005 August 2, "Brian" (username), " Re: How to tank Stratholme undead pulls?", in alt.games.warcraft, Usenet:

This is the only thing that should get you to break off from your position, is to pull something off the healer.

* 2007 April 10, "John Salerno" (username), " Re: Managing the Command Buttons", in alt.games.warcraft, Usenet:

You could also set a fire trap, pull the mob toward it, then send in your pet….

* 2008 August 18, "Mark (newsgroups)" (username), " Re: I'm a priest now!", in alt.games.warcraft, Usenet:

Shield yourself, pull' with Mind Blast if you want, or merely ' pull with SW:P to save mana, then wand, fear if you need to, but use the lowest rank fear.

to score a certain amount of points in a sport.

* How many points did you pull today, Albert?

(horse-racing) To hold back, and so prevent from winning.

The favourite was pulled .

(printing, dated) To take or make (a proof or impression); so called because hand presses were worked by pulling a lever.

(cricket) To strike the ball in a particular manner. (See noun sense.)

* R. H. Lyttelton

Never pull a straight fast ball to leg.

(UK, slang) To pour beer from a pump, keg, or other source.

Let's stop at Finnigan's. The barkeep ''pulls'' a good pint.

Synonyms

* drag, tow, tug, yank * score * (to remove from circulation) recall, withdraw, yank * (sense) carry out, complete, do, execute, perform * (to retrieve or generate for use) generate, get, get hold of, get one's hands on, lay one's hands on, obtain, retrieve * score

Antonyms

* push, repel, shove

Derived terms

See also pulling * it's not the whistle that pulls the train * overpull * pull a... * pull about * pull a face * pull a fast one * pull ahead * pull away * pull back * pull down * pull for * pull in * pulling * pull in one's horns * pull off * pull oneself together * pull one's weight * pull out * pull out all the stops * pull out of the fire * pull over * pull-quote * pull rank * pull round * pull somebody's leg * pull the other one * * pull the wool over someone's eyes * pull through * pull together * pull up

Noun

(en noun)

An act of pulling (applying force)

He gave the hair a sharp pull and it came out.

* Jonathan Swift

I awakened with a violent pull upon the ring which was fastened at the top of my box.

An attractive force which causes motion towards the source

The spaceship came under the pull of the gas giant.

iron fillings drawn by the pull of a magnet

She took a pull on her cigarette.

Any device meant to be pulled, as a lever, knob, handle, or rope

a zipper pull

(slang, dated) Something in one's favour in a comparison or a contest; an advantage; means of influencing.

In weights the favourite had the pull .

Appeal or attraction (as of a movie star)

(Internet, uncountable) The situation where a client sends out a request for data from a server, as in server pull'', ''pull technology

A journey made by rowing

* 1874 , (Marcus Clarke), (For the Term of His Natural Life) Chapter V

As Blunt had said, the burning ship lay a good twelve miles from the Malabar, and the pull was a long and a weary one. Once fairly away from the protecting sides of the vessel that had borne them thus far on their dismal journey, the adventurers seemed to have come into a new atmosphere.

(dated) A contest; a struggle.

a wrestling pull

(Carew)

(obsolete, poetic) Loss or violence suffered.

* Shakespeare

Two pulls at once; / His lady banished, and a limb lopped off.

(slang) The act of drinking.

to take a pull at a mug of beer

(Charles Dickens)

(cricket) A kind of stroke by which a leg ball is sent to the off side, or an off ball to the side.

* R. A. Proctor

The pull is not a legitimate stroke, but bad cricket.

Synonyms

* (act of pulling) tug, yank * (attractive force) attraction * (device meant to be pulled) handle, knob, lever, rope * (influence) influence, sway

Antonyms

* (act of pulling) push, shove * (attractive force) repulsion * (device meant to be pulled) button, push, push button * (influence)

Derived terms

* on the pull * pull cord * ring-pull