verb | noun
pushpush1 /pʊʃ/ ●●● S1 W1 verb 1
MAKE somebody/something MOVE [intransitive, transitive] to make someone or something move by pressing with your hands, arms, shoulders, etc.: It’s still stuck – you’ll have to push harder. Her father was pushing the wheelchair.push somebody/something up/across/away etc. Help me push the car into the garage. She pushed him out the door.push something open/shut I slowly pushed the door open.push against The horse pushed against the fence.THESAURUSroll – to push a round object so that it moves forward: He rolled the tire over to the car.poke – to push someone or something with your finger or something sharp: He poked the snake with a stick but it was dead.shove – to push someone or something roughly and in one big movement: Tom shoved the suitcase under the bed.thrust formal – to push something somewhere quickly and roughly. Used especially in literature: She thrust a letter into my hand.stuff informal – to push something quickly into a small space: Martha stuffed the money into her pocket.ram – to push something very forcefully into a small or tight space: He rammed the bolt shut on the gate.nudge – to push someone gently with your elbow, hand, etc., usually to get his or her attention: My wife nudged me and said, “Let’s go.”2BUTTON/SWITCH [intransitive, transitive] to press a button, switch, etc., especially in order to make a piece of equipment start or stop working SYN press: Push the green button to turn on the machine.3TRY TO GET PAST somebody [intransitive, transitive] to use your hands, arms, shoulders, etc. to make someone move, especially so that you can get past: Stop pushing and wait your turn.push past/through somebody Furiously, she pushed past him.push your way toward/across/to etc. Sandra and I had to push our way to the front of the bus.4PRESSURE [transitive] to encourage or try to persuade someone to do something, especially something that he or she does not want to do: push somebody to do something My boss keeps pushing me to work more overtime.push somebody into (doing) something I think she pushed Derek into marrying her.5MAKE somebody WORK HARD [transitive] to make someone work very hard: Coach Kane pushes his players pretty hard. You have to push yourself if you want to be a professional dancer. He felt he had pushed his body to the limit.6IDEAS/OPINIONS [intransitive, transitive] to try to make people accept your ideas or opinions, especially by talking about them a lot: I got tired of Robin pushing her environmental agenda at the office.push something on somebody We don’t try to push our religion on anyone.push for something He was pushing hard for welfare reform.push to do something Animal rights groups are pushing to ban the capture of dolphins.7MOVE A BODY PART [transitive always + adv./prep.] to move part of your body into a particular position, especially quickly or with lot of force: He pushed his hands into his pocket.8INCREASE/DECREASE to increase or decrease an amount, number, or value: push something ↔ up/down Inflation has pushed up prices by 35%.push something higher/lower New technology has pushed the cost of health care even higher.9DRUGS [transitive] informal to sell illegal drugs → see also pusher10CHANGE A SITUATION [transitive always + adv./prep.] to cause someone or something to be in a particular position or situation, especially a bad one: push somebody/something into something It was a decision which pushed the country into war.11ANNOY [transitive] to annoy someone by doing or saying something, especially again and again: Had she pushed him too far this time?12ADVERTISE [transitive] informal to try to sell more of a product by advertising it a lot SYN promote: We need new ways to push our products.13be pushing 18/30/60 etc. spoken to be nearly 18, 30, 60, etc. years old: Sheila must be pushing 40 by now.14push somebody’s buttons to make someone angry by doing or saying something that annoys him or her: He really knows how to push Dad’s buttons.15push your luck (also push it) informal to do something or ask for something, when this is likely to annoy someone or be risky: You’ll be pushing it if you ask for more money.16push something to the back of your mind (also push something out of your mind) to try to forget about a bad feeling or situation17push the envelope to do something that is new and that goes beyond the limits of what has already been done in a particular activity18push the point old-fashioned to keep trying to make someone accept your opinion in a way that he or she finds annoying19be pushing up (the) daisies humorous to be dead[Origin: 1300–1400 Old French poulser to hit, push, from Latin pulsare, from pellere to drive, hit]push ahead phrasal verb to continue with a plan or activity, especially in a determined way: push ahead with The country will push ahead with reforms.push somebody/something ↔ along phrasal verb to help someone or something to become successful or make progresspush somebody around phrasal verb1to tell someone what to do in an impolite or threatening way: You shouldn’t let people push you around like that.2to push someone in a threatening way, often while talking to him or her in an impolite way: Some of the bigger boys are pushing the little kids around.push aside phrasal verb1push something ↔ aside to try not to think about something, especially something bad, so that you can give your attention to something else: He had to push aside his personal feelings and finish the job.2push somebody ↔ aside to force someone out of a job or position and take the job in his or her placepush away phrasal verb1push somebody ↔ away to make someone feel that he or she cannot have a close relationship with you any longer: I didn’t realize I was gradually pushing my friends away.2push something ↔ away to stop yourself from thinking about somethingpush back phrasal verb1push something ↔ back to arrange for something to happen at a later time than originally planned: The deadline has been pushed back.2push somebody ↔ back to force an army or a crowd to move back from their present positionpush forward phrasal verb1 push something ↔ forward science to make something continue to happen and be successful: New ideas are needed to push the peace process forward.2 to continue moving toward a place, in spite of difficulties: The troops continued to push forward.push off phrasal verb1if a boat pushes off from the shore, it moves away from it2old-fashioned to leave a placepush on phrasal verb1 to continue doing an activity SYN push ahead2push something on somebody to try to make someone accept your ideas or beliefs or buy something that you are selling, especially in a very determined way: We don’t try to push our religion on anybody.3 to continue traveling somewhere, especially after you have had a rest: Hungry and exhausted, the backpackers pushed on.push out phrasal verb1push somebody ↔ out to make someone leave a job, position, or organization2push something ↔ out to cause something to no longer be important, popular, or successful in a particular situationpush somebody/something ↔ over phrasal verb to make someone or something fall to the ground by pushing him, her, or it: The dog had pushed over a lamp.push something ↔ through phrasal verb push something ↔ through to get a new law officially accepted: The party is determined to push through the bill. verb | noun
pushpush2 ●●○ S3 noun 1MOVEMENT [countable] the act of pushing or pressing something: If the door is stuck, just give it a push.2EFFORT [countable] to attempt to get or achieve something: a major diplomatic pusha push to do something The club has begun a push to attract new members.push for The push for improved productivity will affect everyone in the office.3ENCOURAGEMENT [singular] something to encourage or persuade someone to do something: She just needed a little push to get her started.4MILITARY [countable] a planned military attack into the area where the enemy is: The army has made another big push into enemy territory.5if/when push comes to shove spoken used to say what you can do if a situation becomes very difficult: If push comes to shove, you can always ask your dad for help.6with/at the push of a button used to emphasize how easy a machine is to use because it is controlled by pushing a button: Files can be attached to your email with the push of a button.