pull out
Britishverb
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(tr) to extract
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(intr) to depart
the train pulled out of the station
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military to withdraw or escape or be withdrawn or rescued, as from a difficult situation
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(intr)
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to draw away from the side of the road
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to draw out from behind another vehicle to overtake
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(intr) to abandon a position or situation, esp a dangerous or embarrassing one
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(foll by of) to level out or cause to level out (from a dive)
noun
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an extra leaf of a book that folds out
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a removable section of a magazine, etc
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a flight manoeuvre during which an aircraft levels out after a dive
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a withdrawal from a position or situation, esp a dangerous or embarrassing one
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Leave, depart, as in The bus pulled out at noon . [Mid-1800s]
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Withdraw from an undertaking, as in After the crash many investors pulled out of the market . [Late 1800s]
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.
You should always be able to pull out of the deal with the adviser altogether and try a new one at any time.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 30, 2026
"But it can be very severe - people can pull out all of their hair. Different people are triggered by different things. It's fundamentally a self-soothing behaviour."
From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026
Sankey recommended that the U.S. pull out of the region and allow Iran and Gulf Coast countries to figure out how to resolve the situation.
From Barron's • Mar. 24, 2026
Should the team pull out, it would be unprecedented in the modern history of the World Cup.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026
I want to be as easy to pull out as a single piece of chickweed.
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
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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.