pull over

British  

verb

1. (intr) (of a motor vehicle, driver, etc) to halt at the side of the road

2. (tr) (of a police officer) to instruct (the driver of a motor vehicle) to halt at the side of the road

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pull over Idioms  

1. Bring a vehicle to the side of the road; also, instruct a motorist to stop. For example, We pulled over to ask a passerby for directions, or The state trooper pulled the speeding motorist over. [First half of 1900s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pull over

There’s no safe place to pull over, no signs pointing toward escape, no assurance that their lives have a destination.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

Normally busy streets became eerily quiet as police directed traffic to pull over and waved people into shelters.

From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026

The perpetrators told her to drive to the sheriff’s office to settle the signature issue, then ordered her to pull over before she arrived: Bail had to be deposited all at once, not in increments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026

Mercedes asked him to pull over immediately after crossing the line, and he parked at Turn One, in an attempt to avoid damaging the engine.

From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026

I just stayed in my lane since there was nowhere to pull over other than into the gutter weeds.

From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos