pluck

[ pluhk ]
See synonyms for: pluckplucked on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)
  1. to pull off or out from the place of growth, as fruit, flowers, feathers, etc.: to pluck feathers from a chicken.

  2. to give a pull at; grasp: to pluck someone's sleeve.

  1. to pull with sudden force or with a jerk.

  2. to pull or move by force (often followed by away, off, or out).

  3. to remove the feathers, hair, etc., from by pulling: to pluck a chicken.

  4. Slang. to rob, plunder, or fleece.

  5. to sound (the strings of a musical instrument) by pulling at them with the fingers or a plectrum.

verb (used without object)
  1. to pull or tug sharply (often followed by at).

  2. to snatch (often followed by at).

noun
  1. act of plucking; a tug.

  2. the heart, liver, and lungs, especially of an animal used for food.

  1. courage or resolution in the face of difficulties.

Verb Phrases
  1. pluck up,

    • to eradicate; uproot.

    • to summon up one's courage; rouse one's spirits: He always plucked up at the approach of danger. She was a stranger in the town, but, plucking up her courage, she soon made friends.

Origin of pluck

1
before 1000; Middle English plukken (v.), Old English pluccian, cognate with Middle Low German plucken; akin to Dutch plukken,German pflücken

Other words for pluck

Other words from pluck

  • plucker, noun
  • half-plucked, adjective
  • un·plucked, adjective
  • well-plucked, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use pluck in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pluck

pluck

/ (plʌk) /


verb
  1. (tr) to pull off (feathers, fruit, etc) from (a fowl, tree, etc)

  2. (when intr, foll by at) to pull or tug

  1. (tr; foll by off, away, etc) archaic to pull (something) forcibly or violently (from something or someone)

  2. (tr) to sound (the strings) of (a musical instrument) with the fingers, a plectrum, etc

  3. (tr) another word for strip 1 (def. 7)

  4. (tr) slang to fleece or swindle

noun
  1. courage, usually in the face of difficulties or hardship

  2. a sudden pull or tug

  1. the heart, liver, and lungs, esp of an animal used for food

Origin of pluck

1
Old English pluccian, plyccan; related to German pflücken

Derived forms of pluck

  • plucker, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012