pluck

[ pluhk ]

/ plʌk /

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See synonyms for: pluck / plucked on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to pull off or out from the place of growth, as fruit, flowers, feathers, etc.: to pluck feathers from a chicken.

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

to pull with sudden force or with a jerk.

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

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

Slang. to rob, plunder, or fleece.

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

verb (used without object)

to pull or tug sharply (often followed by at).

to snatch (often followed by at).

noun

act of plucking; a tug.

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

courage or resolution in the face of difficulties.

Verb Phrases

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.

OTHER WORDS FOR pluck

2 tug.

3 yank, tear, rip.

12 bravery, boldness, determination, mettle, nerve.

See synonyms for pluck on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of pluck

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

OTHER WORDS FROM pluck

plucker, nounhalf-plucked, adjectiveun·plucked, adjectivewell-plucked, adjective

Words nearby pluck

ploy, PLP, PLR, PLSS, plu., pluck, pluck up, pluck up one's courage, plucky, plug, plug and feathers

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use pluck in a sentence

Bluetooth pairing comes with the pluck of a guitar and that button lights up too—it’s one of the easiest, best Bluetooth speaker designs to use.
JBL Flip 5 review: The take-anywhere, vibe-creating compact Bluetooth speaker makes a splash|Erin Behan|January 12, 2022|Popular-Science
The midrange, where the song breathes, was forward but never strident and the earphones presented the more delicate guitar plucks and crisp piano melodies better than my AirPods Pro.
Shure Aonic 215 (Gen. 2) earphones review: Attuned to my needs|Natasha Roy|November 20, 2021|Popular-Science
Bergdahl, who appeared in a previous video pleading for the United States to rescue him, seems to have demonstrated no such pluck.
Body Language Expert: Bowe Bergdahl Seemed Reluctant to Leave Captors|Lloyd Grove|June 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Pluck a pebble from a mountain and pretend the mountain is gone.
The Crazy Way Creationists Try To Explain Human Tails Without Evolution|Karl W. Giberson|June 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Maintaining tight eye contact, the butlers pluck out audience members for a gripping, melancholic dance.
A Mad Feast Is the Next 'Sleep No More'|Nina Strochlic|February 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The human urge to pluck a string and make music goes back many millennia.
Was The Beatles’ Music Really That Unique? Yeah, It Totally Was.|Michael Tomasky|February 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The easiest thing would be to pluck another exiled oligarch out of the sin bin.
Putin Needs an Enemy After Berezovsky’s Death|Peter Pomerantsev|March 25, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It is more advantageous to pluck the leaves when they are dry than when they are moist.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
You've done a big thing to-day, and if you hadn't had more pluck and ginger than common, it's a cinch you'd have lost out.
Motor Matt's "Century" Run|Stanley R. Matthews
You that hate good, and love evil: that violently pluck off their skins from them and their flesh from their bones?
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee: and will crush thy cities.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
For a pen she would catch a goose, pluck a quill, and ask Billy to cut it.
A Forest Hearth: A Romance of Indiana in the Thirties|Charles Major

British Dictionary definitions for pluck

pluck

/ (plʌk) /

verb

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

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

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

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

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

(tr) slang to fleece or swindle

noun

courage, usually in the face of difficulties or hardship

a sudden pull or tug

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

Derived forms of pluck

plucker, noun

Word Origin for pluck

Old English pluccian, plyccan; related to German pflücken

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

pluck

OTHER WORDS FOR pluck

Origin of pluck

OTHER WORDS FROM pluck

Words nearby pluck

Words related to pluck

How to use pluck in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pluck

Derived forms of pluck

Word Origin for pluck