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Pull vs Throw - What's the difference?

pull | throw |

In transitive terms the difference between pull and throw

is that pull is to strain (a muscle, tendon, ligament, etc.) while throw is to project or send forth.

In transitive informal terms the difference between pull and throw

is that pull is to do or perform while throw is to confuse or mislead.

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

    throw

    English

    Etymology 1

    From (etyl) (m), (m), from (etyl) .

    Verb

  • To hurl; to cause an object to move rapidly through the air.
  • *
  • , title=(The Celebrity), chapter=5 , passage=When this conversation was repeated in detail within the hearing of the young woman in question, and undoubtedly for his benefit, Mr. Trevor threw shame to the winds and scandalized the Misses Brewster then and there by proclaiming his father to have been a country storekeeper.}}
  • To eject or cause to fall off.
  • * Shakespeare
  • There the snake throws her enamelled skin.
  • To move to another position or condition; to displace.
  • * , chapter=17
  • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=This time was most dreadful for Lilian. Thrown on her own resources and almost penniless, she maintained herself and paid the rent of a wretched room near the hospital by working as a charwoman, sempstress, anything. In a moment she had dropped to the level of a casual labourer.}}
  • (ceramics) To make (a pot) by shaping clay as it turns on a wheel.
  • (cricket) Of a bowler, to deliver (the ball) illegally by straightening the bowling arm during delivery.
  • (computing) To send (an error) to an exception-handling mechanism in order to interrupt normal processing.
  • (sports) To intentionally lose a game.
  • * 2012 , August 1. Peter Walker and Haroon Siddique in Guardian Unlimited, Eight Olympic badminton players disqualified for 'throwing games'
  • Four pairs of women's doubles badminton players, including the Chinese top seeds, have been ejected from the Olympic tournament for trying to throw matches in an effort to secure a more favourable quarter-final draw.
  • (informal) To confuse or mislead.
  • * 1999 , Jan Blackstone-Ford, The Custody Solutions Sourcebook - Page 196
  • "Jann, why does he hate me so much?" That question threw me. I was expecting a lunatic yelling profanities.
  • (figuratively) To send desperately.
  • * {{quote-news, year=2010, date=December 28, author=Marc Vesty, work=BBC
  • , title= Stoke 0-2 Fulham , passage=Stoke threw men forward in numbers as they attempted to find a way back into the game, and Mark Schwarzer was forced into a low save from Huth's close-range effort.}}
  • To imprison.
  • * 1818 , (Mary Shelley), (Frankenstein)
  • The plot of Felix was quickly discovered, and De Lacey and Agatha were thrown into prison.
  • * 1993 , Margaret McKee, Fred Chisenhall, Beale black & blue: life and music on black America's main street - Page 30
  • The standard method of dealing with an addict was to arrest him, throw him into a cell, and leave him until the agonizing pangs of withdrawal were over.
  • To organize an event, especially a party.
  • * {{quote-news, year=1986, date=March 1, work=Evening News
  • , title= Bash Planned , passage=And now, Clevelanders hoping to bring the Rock Roll Hall of Fame to their city are throwing a bash to commemorate the 34th birthday of disc Jockey Alan Freed's "Moondog Coronation Ball".}}
  • * 1979 , Working Mother - July 1979 Page 72[http://books.google.com/books?id=SWEEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA72&dq=%22throw+a+party%22&hl=en&ei=KGUeTbvyA426hAfw6OC3Dg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CFkQ6AEwCTgK#v=onepage&q=%22throw%20a%20party%22&f=false]
  • Should you be interested, for whatever reason, it will tell you how to throw a party for your 40-year-old husband or your 100-year-old great-grandmother. It also describes games that can be played at various kinds of parties
  • To roll (a die or dice).
  • * 1844 , Samuel Laing translating (Snorri Sturluson), Heimskringla
  • The kings came to the agreement between themselves that they would cast lots by the dice to determine who should have this property, and that he who threw the highest should have the district. The Swedish king threw two sixes, and said King Olaf need scarcely throw .
  • To cause a certain number on the die or dice to be shown after rolling it.
  • * 1844 , Samuel Laing translating (Snorri Sturluson), Heimskringla
  • The kings came to the agreement between themselves that they would cast lots by the dice to determine who should have this property, and that he who threw' the highest should have the district. The Swedish king ' threw two sixes, and said King Olaf need scarcely throw.
  • (bridge) To discard.
  • * {{quote-news, year=1990, date=January 4, work=(The Washington Times)
  • , title= Sharp coup overcomes trump split , passage=Declarer threw his queen of spades on the high diamond. He then won the last three tricks with his ace, queen and nine of hearts behind East's jack third.}}
  • (martial arts) To lift the opponent off the ground and bring him back down, especially into a position behind the thrower.
  • To subject someone to verbally.
  • * {{quote-news, year=2007, date=June 11, author=Claude Salhani, work=UPI
  • , title= Analysis: Irony of Bush's European tour , passage=In other European cities the president visited this week, people waited for his motorcade to pass to throw insults at him, requiring the police to intervene with batons, water cannons and tear gas.}}
  • (said of animals) To give birth to.
  • * 1916 , Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association: Volume 49
  • At the end of the normal gestation period the cow threw two calf mummies as large as cats.
  • (said of one's voice) To change in order to give the illusion that the voice is that of someone else.
  • * {{quote-news, year=2005, date=April 13, author=Leon Neyfakh, work=Harvard Crimson
  • , title= BOOKENDS: Will the Real Jonathan Safran Foer Please Stand Up , passage=“Then, when I throw my voice, when I speak as someone who's quite different from me, it starts to feel very authentic.”}}
  • To show sudden emotion, especially anger.
  • * 1991 , Janet L. Davies, Ellen Hastings Janosik, Mental health and psychiatric nursing: a caring approach
  • Bill runs into the kitchen and tells Dad that Erik is throwing a tantrum. He tells Bill to go back and watch his program and to ignore his brother. Fifteen minutes later, Erik is still screaming
  • * 1996 , New York Magazine Vol. 29, No. 32 - 19 Aug 1996; Entertaining Mrs Stone
  • In 1975, pregnant with the second of her three children, she threw a hissy fit to get on a trip to Boston for elected officials.
  • To project or send forth.
  • * 1900 , , (The House Behind the Cedars) , Chapter I,
  • Warwick left the undertaker's shop and retraced his steps until he had passed the lawyer's office, toward which he threw an affectionate glance.
  • To put on hastily; to spread carelessly.
  • * Alexander Pope
  • O'er his fair limbs a flowery vest he threw .
  • To twist two or more filaments of (silk, etc.) so as to form one thread; to twist together, as singles, in a direction contrary to the twist of the singles themselves; sometimes applied to the whole class of operations by which silk is prepared for the weaver.
  • (Tomlinson)
    Synonyms
    * (cause an object to move rapidly through the air) bowl, bung, buzz, cast, catapult, chuck, dash, direct, fire, fling, flip, heave, hurl, launch, lob, pitch, project, propel, send, shoot, shy, sling, toss, whang * (eject or cause to fall off) eject, throw off * (move to another position) displace, relocate * See also
    Derived terms
    * a stone's throw * overthrow * throw a bone to * throw a fit * throw away, throw-away * throw a wobbly * throwback * throw down the gauntlet * throw in the sponge * throw in the towel * throwing * throw shapes * throw the book at * throw up * throw one's weight around

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • The flight of a thrown object; as, a fast throw.
  • The act of throwing something.
  • A distance travelled; displacement; as, the throw of the piston.
  • A piece of fabric used to cover a bed, sofa or other soft furnishing.
  • A single instance, occurrence, venture, or chance.
  • Football tickets are expensive at fifty bucks a throw .

    Derived terms

    * throw pillow * throw-up

    References

    * Krueger, Dennis (December 1982). "Why On Earth Do They Call It Throwing?" Studio Potter Vol. 11, Number 1.[http://www.studiopotter.org/articles/?art=art0001]

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl) (m), alteration of (m), from (etyl) . More at (m).

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Pain, especially pain associated with childbirth; throe.
  • (Spenser)
    (Dryden)
  • (veterinary) The act of giving birth in animals, especially in cows.
  • Etymology 3

    From (etyl), from (etyl) .

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (obsolete) A moment, time, occasion.
  • (obsolete) A period of time; a while.
  • * 1590 , Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene , III.iv:
  • Downe himselfe he layd / Vpon the grassie ground, to sleepe a throw ; / The cold earth was his couch, the hard steele his pillow.
    Synonyms
    * (l)

    Etymology 4

    Noun

    (head)