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pull oneself up by the bootstraps

Succeed by one's own efforts, as in She was homeless for nearly two years, but she managed to pull herself up by the bootstraps. This expression alludes to pulling on high boots by means of the straps or loops attached to them at the top. [Early 1900s]

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Words nearby pull oneself up by the bootstraps

pullman kitchen, pull no punches, pull-off, pull-on, pull oneself together, pull oneself up by the bootstraps, pull one's punches, pull one's weight, pullorum disease, pullout, pull out all the stops
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.