pull away the shoulder

verb

To turn away, refusing to listen.

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Meanings

verbpull away the shoulder (third-person singular simple present pulls away the shoulder, present participle pulling away the shoulder, simple past and past participle pulled away the shoulder)

present singular third person pulls away the shoulder · participle present pulling away the shoulder · participle past pulled away the shoulder · past pulled away the shoulder

  1. To turn away, refusing to listen.

    And it appears from the united testimony of God and man, that sinners have always been disposed to pull away the shoulder and stop their ears, and harden their hearts under divine instructions.

    1828, Otis Thompson, The Hopkinsian Magazine, volume 3, page 459

Origin

From the Bible, Zechariah 7:11 KJV: "But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear."

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

pull away the shoulder. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pull%20away%20the%20shoulder

MLA

“pull away the shoulder.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pull%20away%20the%20shoulder. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pull away the shoulder,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pull%20away%20the%20shoulder.

Source: pull away the shoulder on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.