haul
(hôl)
[Middle English haulen, from Old French haler, of Germanic origin.]
verb: hauled, haul·ing, hauls.
transitive verb
- To pull or drag forcibly; tug. See synonyms at pull
- To transport, as with a truck or cart.
- Informal To compel to go, especially for trial: “hauled the huge companies into court” (Peter Matthiessen)
- Nautical To change the course of (a ship), especially in order to sail closer into the wind.
intransitive verb
- To pull; tug.
- To provide transportation; cart.
- To shift direction: The wind hauled to the east.
- To change one's mind.
- Nautical To change the course of a ship.
noun
- The act of pulling or dragging.
- The act of transporting or carting.
- A distance, especially the distance over which something is pulled or transported.
- Something that is pulled or transported; a load.
- Everything collected or acquired by a single effort; the take: a big haul of fish.
phrasal verbs
- haul off
- To draw back slightly, as in preparation for initiating an action: “hauled off and smacked the hapless aide across the face” (Bill Barol)
- To shift operations to a new place; to move away.
- haul up
- To come to a halt.
idioms
- haul ass
- To move quickly: We'll be late if you don't haul ass.
derivatives
- hauĺer
- noun
