tug
Americanverb (used with object)
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tugs,
present (3rd person singular)
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tugged,
past participle, past
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tugging
present participle
verb (used without object)
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tugs,
present (3rd person singular)
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tugged,
past participle, past
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tugging
present participle
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to pull with force or effort.
to tug at a stuck drawer.
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to strive hard; labor; toil.
noun
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tugs
plural
verb
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to pull or drag with sharp or powerful movements
the boy tugged at the door handle
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(tr) to tow (a vessel) by means of a tug
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(intr) to work; toil
noun
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a strong pull or jerk
he gave the rope a tug
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Also called: tugboat. towboat. a boat with a powerful engine, used for towing barges, ships, etc
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a hard struggle or fight
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a less common word for trace 2
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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tugsimple
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tugssimple
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have tuggedperfect
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has tuggedperfect
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am tuggingprogressive
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are tuggingprogressive
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is tuggingprogressive
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have been tuggingperfect progressive
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has been tuggingperfect progressive
Past
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tuggedsimple
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had tuggedperfect
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was tuggingprogressive
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were tuggingprogressive
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had been tuggingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of tug
1175–1225; Middle English toggen to play-wrestle, contend; akin to Old English togian to tow 1
Explanation
To tug is to forcefully pull or drag something. You might need your sister's help to tug your knee-high boots off at the end of a long day. A child might tug at his parent's arm and a commuter might tug a rolling suitcase behind her as she enters a subway car. Something else that tugs is a tugboat — and tug is a common nickname for these boats that are designed to pull (or push) other vessels. Tug and tow share the same root word meaning "to pull" or "to lead."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
You tapped into something really universal with the strife between boomer parents and their millennial children — a real tug of war for power that’s happening in a lot of people’s lives right now.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
Their model describes a computational tug of war between two fundamentally different kinds of neural organization, both of which are established even before birth.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 31, 2026
Unsurprisingly, the replies tug at the heartstrings: “I’m so glad Dolly saved you; she was amazing, and you are too.”
From Salon ● Aug. 28, 2026
“The risk is lower, but it’s never gone,” said Weldon, who once engaged in a tug of war with a marmot over her backpack on a hike.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Mrs. Clarke gave her apron an irritated tug.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
So it tugs at my heartstrings to read about New Yorkers having to surrender their cats and dogs to shelters out of financial distress.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026
"Touch wood, no. I've been very, very close. It's this that frightens them", he tugs his orange vest.
From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2026
You’re doing fine, but something tugs at you from deep within.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 7, 2026
Before serving, he tugs at his shirt, brushes his hair back and wipes his face.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2024
Mouse Girl tugs on my raggedy T-shirt to hold me back as she elbows her way ahead.
From "Born Behind Bars" by Padma Venkatraman
One decision tugged at another, and by the time I checked out, dinner had become rigatoni with chicken, spinach and sun-dried tomato sauce.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
The Acme plunged into a ditch in Ohio and was tugged out by a passing trolley.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
After a goalless first half, the game sparked into life when Manchester United were awarded a penalty after Alex Jimenez needlessly tugged back Matheus Cunha inside the box.
From BBC ● Mar. 20, 2026
Her mouth often pulls to the right when she speaks, her admirable non-native English tugged easterly in a Finnish accent.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2026
Cat tugged at the bag’s zipper, which seemed to be permanently stuck.
From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn
After tugging his short shot at history left of the hole, Herbert bent over in disappointment before composing himself to tap in.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
He wears a baseball cap and an oversize brown sweater, tugging on the sleeves while he ponders.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
It refers to the way a rotating black hole twists the spacetime around it, tugging on nearby matter such as stars and causing their paths to wobble.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 18, 2025
The starchy pasta water, slowly whisked in, binds it all into a sauce that clings and stretches, tugging at each bite with just enough tension to remind you that this is pasta, not soup.
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2025
“Come on,” Ivy said, standing up and tugging on Josie’s arm to pull her off the couch, too.
From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
