tug

/tʌg/

Thân thiện

A small tug guides a large cargo ship into the harbor.

Definition

1. Noun:

   • A sudden, strong pull: A short, forceful act of pulling something.
   • A small, powerful boat: A boat with a powerful engine used for towing or pushing larger ships.

2. Verb:

   • To pull something hard and suddenly: To give a short, strong pull on something.
   • To struggle or strive: To make a great effort, often against resistance.
   • To tow a vessel: To use a tugboat to pull or guide a ship.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • He gave the rope a sharp tug to get my attention.
  • The tug guided the massive cargo ship into the narrow harbor.

• Verb:

  • The child tugged at her mother's sleeve.
  • She tugged for years to make a decent living.
  • The small boat tugged the barge up the river.

Advanced Usage

• "to tug at someone's heartstrings": To evoke strong feelings of sadness or sympathy.
  • The sad story tugged at my heartstrings.
• "to tug and wrestle with": To struggle intensely with a difficult problem or emotion.
  • He tugged and wrestled with his conscience before making the decision.

Variants and Related Words

• Tugboat (n): A small, powerful boat used for towing; a synonym for the noun "tug" when referring to a boat.
• Tug-of-war (n): A contest in which two teams pull on opposite ends of a rope.

Synonyms

• Pull (v): To exert force on something to move it towards oneself.
• Yank (v): To pull with a quick, vigorous movement.
• Heave (v): To pull or lift something heavy with great effort.
• Strain (v): To make a strenuous effort.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Tug at: To pull repeatedly or persistently on something.
  • The puppy kept tugging at my shoelaces.
• Tug away: To pull something off or apart with effort.
  • She tugged the lid away from the jar.

Related Idioms

• Tug one's forelock: (Historical/figurative) To show excessive respect or deference,源自旧时拉额前头发以示敬意的动作。
  • He's not the type to tug his forelock to anyone in authority.

Học thuật

Noun

1. a powerful small boat designed to pull or push larger ships
2. a sudden abrupt pull

Verb

1. struggle in opposition
   • She tugged and wrestled with her conflicts
2. pull or strain hard at
   • Each oar was tugged by several men
3. move by pulling hard
   • The horse finally tugged the cart out of the mud
4. carry with difficulty
   • You'll have to lug this suitcase
5. tow (a vessel) with a tug
   • The tugboat tugged the freighter into the harbor
6. strive and make an effort to reach a goal
   • She tugged for years to make a decent living
   • We have to push a little to make the deadline!
   • She is driving away at her doctoral thesis
7. pull hard
   • The prisoner tugged at the chains
   • This movie tugs at the heart strings

Từ đồng nghĩa

• tugboat
• towboat
• tower
• jerk
• lug
• tote
• labor
• labour
• push
• drive