Etymology

pull

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Today it means: To apply a force to (an object) so that it comes toward the person or thing applying the force. Full definition →

Middle English pullen ← Old English pullian
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The story

  1. Middle English · inherited frompul
  2. Old English · inherited frompullian“to pull, draw, tug, pluck off”
  3. Middle English · inherited frompullen
  4. English todaypull

Verb from Middle English pullen, from Old English pullian (“to pull, draw, tug, pluck off”), of uncertain ultimate origin. Related to West Frisian pûlje (“to shell, husk”), Middle Dutch pullen (“to drink”), Middle Dutch polen (“to peel, strip”), Low German pulen (“to pick, pluck, pull, tear, strip off husks”), Icelandic púla (“to work hard, beat”). Noun from Middle English pul, pull, pulle, from the verb pullen (“to pull”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.