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pluck

verb · noun

Simple meaning

Pull or pull out sharply.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

pluhk
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈplʌk

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. Pull or pull out sharply

    “Pluck the flowers off the bush.”

  2. transitive

    To take or remove (someone) quickly from a particular place or situation.

  3. transitivemusic

    To play (a single string on a musical instrument) by pulling and then releasing it, such as on a guitar.

  4. transitive

    To remove feathers from (a bird).

  5. transitive

    To play a string instrument pizzicato.

  6. Strip of feathers

noun

  1. An instance of plucking or pulling sharply.

  2. The lungs, heart with trachea and often oesophagus removed from slaughtered animals.

  3. informalfigurativeuncountable

    Guts, nerve, fortitude or persistence.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
C1 · Advanced
Frequency
Uncommon
Typical Use
Primarily written

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Pull or pull out sharply

Used this way, pluck is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Heard in a sentence
“Pluck the flowers off the bush.”
Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Nearby words

  • plunk , rarer, so it draws attention

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use pluck

  • “Pluck the flowers off the bush.”verb
  • “He plucked the strings of his mandolin.”verb

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Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

  • pull

    Cause to move by pulling.

  • pick

    To grasp and pull with the fingers or fingernails.

  • tear

    To rend (a solid material) by holding or restraining in two places and pulling apart, whether intentionally or not.

  • tweak

    Pinch or squeeze sharply.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

  • pluckedadjectiveInflected form

    Of a stringed instrument.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • pluck atverbCompound term

    Pluck or pull at with the fingers.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

verb

Sense: pull or pull out sharply

plunkRarepick

noun

Sense: instance of plucking or pulling sharply

rollhookpick offplunkRare

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.