Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense tugs, present participle tugging, past tense, past participle tugged
1. verb
If you tug something or tugat it, you give it a quick and usually strong pull.
A little boy came running up and tugged at his sleeve excitedly. [VERB + at]
She kicked him, tugging his thick hair. [VERB noun]
[Also VERB]
Synonyms: pull, drag, pluck, jerk More Synonyms of tug
Tug is also a noun.
Bobby gave her hair a tug.
I felt a tug at my sleeve. [+ at]
2. countable noun
A tug or a tug boat is a small powerful boat which pulls large ships, usually when they come into a port.
Synonyms: pull, jerk, yank, wrench More Synonyms of tug
More Synonyms of tug
tug in British English
(tʌɡ)
verbWord forms: tugs, tugging or tugged
1. (whenintr, sometimes foll by at)
to pull or drag with sharp or powerful movements
the girl tugged at the door handle
2. (transitive)
to tow (a vessel) by means of a tug
3. (intransitive)
to work; toil
noun
4.
a strong pull or jerk
he gave the rope a tug
5. Also called: tugboat, towboat
a boat with a powerful engine, used for towing barges, ships, etc
6.
a hard struggle or fight
7. a less common word for trace2 (sense 1)
Derived forms
tugger (ˈtugger)
noun
Word origin
C13: related to Old English tēon to tow1
tug in American English
(tʌg)
verb intransitiveWord forms: tugged or ˈtugging
1.
to exert great effort in pulling; pull hard; drag; haul
often with at
2.
to labor; toil; struggle
verb transitive
3.
to pull at with great force; strain at
4.
to drag; haul
5.
to tow with a tugboat
noun
6.
an act or instance of tugging; hard pull
7.
a great effort or strenuous contest
8.
a rope, chain, etc. used for tugging or pulling; esp., a trace of a harness
9.
tugboat
SIMILAR WORDS: pull
Derived forms
tugger (ˈtugger)
noun
Word origin
ME tuggen, prob. < ON toga, to draw, pull, akin to OE togian (see tow1), teon, to pull < IE base *deuk-, to draw, pull > duct
More idioms containing
tug
tug at the heartstrings
tug your forelock
Examples of 'tug' in a sentence
tug
Surely the only necks you can breathe down in a tug of war are those of your own side?
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
She was surrounded by tug boats.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
There is always a major battle and the poor innocent is involved in a tug of love.
The Sun (2009)
One feels the tug at musical language and our heartstrings.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
He tugged us away from the bodies.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
Last night three tug boats were on standby to attempt to haul the vessel free.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The pain was getting worse as they tugged and pulled at my nerves.
The Sun (2015)
But no one wins in this tug of love.
The Sun (2015)
It wants you to feel the cold tug of melancholy.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
And their rhythmic drive was tugged back here and there just enough to make the finale tingle with zest.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
She likes tugging ropes as well.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
All three are massive, each accompanied by a different emotional tug.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
If ballet demands that you defy gravity, contemporary dance tugs you back to the floor.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
That being that you tugged her hair and walked past her,' the judge said.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
He raised his arms higher in a gesture of surrender and as his fingertips brushed against the cotton sheet, he grabbed hold and tugged hard.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
With the mood often awkwardly upbeat, Stars struggle to retain the strong emotional tug of much of their previous work.
The Sun (2012)
In other languages
tug
British English: tug VERB
If you tug something or tug at it, you give it a quick and usually strong pull.
A little boy came running up and tugged at his sleeve excitedly.
American English: tug
Brazilian Portuguese: puxar
Chinese: 猛拉
European Spanish: remolcar
French: tirer
German: zerren
Italian: tirare con forza
Japanese: ぐいと引っ張る
Korean: 세게 당기다
European Portuguese: puxar
Latin American Spanish: remolcar
All related terms of 'tug'
tug-of-war
A tug-of-war is a sports event in which two teams test their strength by pulling against each other on opposite ends of a rope.
tug-of-love
Journalists sometimes use tug-of-love to refer to a situation in which the parents of a child are divorced and one of the parents tries to get the child from the other, for example by taking him or her illegally.
tug your forelock
to show too much respect to another person and make yourself seem very humble and inferior
tug at the heartstrings
to cause someone to feel a great deal of pity or sadness for someone or something
tug/touch one's forelock
If you say that a person tugs their forelock to another person, you are criticizing them for showing too much respect to the second person or being unnecessarily worried about their opinions.
Chinese translation of 'tug'
tug
(tʌɡ)
vt
拉 (lā)
vi
to tug at拉 (lā)
n
to give sth a tug猛拽某物 (měng zhuài mǒuwù)
(c) (= ship) 拖船 (tuōchuán)
1 (verb)
Definition
to pull or drag with a sharp or powerful movement
A little boy tugged at her sleeve excitedly.
Synonyms
pull
Wes was in the yard pulling weeds when we drove up.
drag
pluck
He plucked the pen from behind his ear.
jerk
yank
She yanked the child back into the house.
wrench
They wrenched open the passenger door and got into the car.
lug
2 (verb)
Definition
to pull or drag with a sharp or powerful movement
She tugged him along by his arm.
Synonyms
drag
He got up and dragged his chair towards the table.
pull
I helped pull him out of the water.
haul
A crane hauled the car out of the stream.
tow
He was using the vehicle to tow his trailer.
lug
Nobody wants to lug around huge heavy suitcases.
heave
He heaved Barney to his feet.
draw
He drew his chair nearer the fire.
(noun)
Definition
a strong pull or jerk
My head was snapped backwards by a tug on my air hose.
Synonyms
pull
The tooth must be removed with a firm, straight pull.
jerk
She gave the dog's lead a jerk.
yank
Grabbing his ponytail, Shirley gave it a yank.
wrench
The rope stopped his fall with a wrench that hurt his ribs.
drag
haul
tow
I can give you a tow if you want.
traction
heave
Seetow
Synonyms of 'tug'
tug
Explore 'tug' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of heave
Definition
to lift or move (something) with a great effort
He heaved Barney to his feet.
Synonyms
lift,
raise,
pull (up),
drag (up),
haul (up),
tug,
lever,
hoist,
heft (informal)
in the sense of jerk
She gave the dog's lead a jerk.
Synonyms
tug,
pull,
yank,
wrench,
twitch,
tweak
in the sense of lug
Definition
to carry or drag with great effort
Nobody wants to lug around huge heavy suitcases.
Synonyms
drag,
carry,
pull,
haul,
tow,
yank,
hump (British, slang),
heave
in the sense of pluck
Definition
to sound the strings of (a musical instrument) with the fingers or a plectrum
He plucked the pen from behind his ear.
Synonyms
tug,
catch,
snatch,
clutch,
jerk,
yank,
tweak,
pull at
in the sense of tow
Definition
to pull or drag (a vehicle), esp. by means of a rope or cable
He was using the vehicle to tow his trailer.
Synonyms
drag,
draw,
pull,
trail,
haul,
tug,
yank,
hale,
trawl,
lug
in the sense of tow
Definition
the act or an instance of towing
I can give you a tow if you want.
Synonyms
drag,
pull,
haul,
tug
in the sense of wrench
Definition
to twist or pull (something) violently, for example to remove it from something to which it is attached
They wrenched open the passenger door and got into the car.
Synonyms
twist,
force,
pull,
tear,
rip,
tug,
jerk,
yank,
wring,
wrest
in the sense of wrench
Definition
a violent twist or pull
The rope stopped his fall with a wrench that hurt his ribs.
Synonyms
twist,
pull,
rip,
tug,
jerk,
yank
in the sense of yank
Definition
to pull (someone or something) with a sharp movement