Pull up meaning
Pull up means to stop a car or other vehicle, often for a short time. It can also mean to lift or pull something higher, or out of the ground.
pull up
pull up · pulled · pulling
A taxi pulled up outside the hotel.
Pull up meanings and examples
4 meanings, each with its own CEFR level. A level marked ~ is our estimate: Oxford and Cambridge give none for that meaning.
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1
Stop a car or other vehicle, often for a short time
pull up
- A taxi pulled up outside the hotel.
- We pulled up at the lights next to a police car.
- Did the bus pull up at the right stop?
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2
Lift or pull something higher, or out of the ground
pull something up
- Pull up your socks. They’re falling down.
- We spent Sunday pulling up weeds in the garden.
- He pulled the blind up to let the light in.
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3
Find and show something on a computer or phone screen
pull something up
- Let me pull up your booking on my screen.
- I have the map. Let me pull it up on my phone.
- She pulled up last year’s numbers during the meeting.
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4
Move a chair closer so you can sit with people
pull something up
- Pull up a chair and join us.
- He pulled a stool up to the bar.
- There isn’t room. Don’t pull up another chair.
Café orders
New friends
At the airport
Slova
Use pull up in real conversations
- Learn new words with picture cards
- Talk with Felix, an AI tutor, about the things you love
- Short lessons at your level, a few minutes a day
Is pull up separable?
When a vehicle stops, pull up has no object: The car pulled up. In the other meanings it is separable: pull up the file, pull the file up, pull it up.
A pull-up, with a hyphen, is also an exercise: you hang from a bar and pull your body up. Pull your socks up (UK) is an idiom for try harder.
Verb tenses for pull up
| Present | I pull up · she pulls up |
|---|---|
| Past | pulled up |
| Present perfect | have pulled up |
| -ing form | pulling up |
Common mistakes with pull up
What learners often say, and what to say instead.
Wrong: The taxi pulled up in front our house.
Right: The taxi pulled up in front of our house.
The phrase is in front of.
Wrong: Can you pull up it on the screen?
Right: Can you pull it up on the screen?
A pronoun goes between pull and up.
Wrong: The police pulled me up for speeding.
Right: The police pulled me over for speeding.
When the police stop a driver, the usual verb is pull over.
Synonyms and opposites of pull up
Words close to it, and words that mean the opposite.
Similar
- pull overmove to the side of the road and stop
- draw upmore formal; a vehicle stops somewhere
- bring upshow information on a screen; also mention a topic
Pull up quiz
Three quick questions. Pick an answer to see if it is right and why.
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1A black car ___ outside the school and a woman got out.
Pull up means stop a vehicle somewhere.
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2Choose the right sentence.
The pronoun goes between pull and up.
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3At a bank, the clerk says, “I’ll pull up your account.” What will she do?
Pull up information means show it on a screen.
More phrasal verbs with pull
3 phrasal verbs start with pull. Test yourself on all of them in a few minutes.
Pull up FAQ
Questions people ask about pull up.
What does pull up mean in a car?
It means stop, often at a door, a kerb or traffic lights. The bus pulled up and the doors opened.
What does pull up a file mean?
It means open it and show it on a screen. It is common at work: Can you pull up the email from Monday?
What is a pull-up?
A pull-up is an exercise. You hold a bar above your head and pull your body up until your chin is over the bar.
Use pull up in real conversations
In Slova you learn new words with picture cards, then use them when you talk about the things you love. A few minutes a day, at your level.