I. haul 1 /hɔːl $ hɒːl/ BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: French ; Origin: haler 'to pull' ]
1 . to pull something heavy with a continuous steady movement
haul something off/onto/out of etc something
She hauled her backpack onto her back.
the steam locomotive which hauled the train
I hauled the door shut behind me.
2 . haul yourself up/out of etc something
a) to move somewhere with a lot of effort, especially because you are injured or tired:
Patrick hauled himself painfully up the stairs.
b) to succeed in achieving a higher position in society, in a competition etc:
He is confident that the club can haul themselves further up the league.
3 . haul somebody over the coals British English to criticize someone severely because they have done something wrong SYN rake somebody over the coals American English
4 . haul off and hit/punch/kick somebody American English informal to try to hit someone very hard
5 . haul ass American English spoken not polite to hurry
haul somebody off phrasal verb
to force someone to go somewhere that they do not want to go, especially to prison:
Police handcuffed him and hauled him off to jail.
haul somebody up phrasal verb informal
to officially bring someone to a court of law to be judged
haul somebody up before/in front of
Campbell was hauled up in front of the magistrate.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ pull to make something or someone move in the direction that your hands are moving:
He pulled her towards him and kissed her.
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Sam was pulling on his socks.
▪ tug to pull something suddenly with a short quick movement, often to get someone’s attention:
‘Look,’ he said, tugging at his brother’s sleeve.
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I tugged at the drawer but it wouldn’t open.
▪ drag to pull something along the ground, especially because it is heavy:
If we can’t lift the piano, we’ll have to drag it.
▪ haul to pull something big and heavy using a lot of effort, especially upwards and using a rope:
They hauled their boats further up the beach.
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fishermen hauling in their nets
▪ heave to pull or lift something very heavy, especially with one movement:
He heaved the sack of sand onto his shoulder.
▪ draw formal to pull something or someone gently in a particular direction:
Lisa reached for his hand but he drew it away.
▪ pull to be attached to a vehicle or piece of machinery and make it move behind you in the direction you are going:
Ten dogs were pulling a sledge over the ice.
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a tractor pulling a plough
▪ tow to pull a vehicle behind – used about a vehicle, a boat, or a horse pulling something using a rope or chain:
The car in front of us was towing a caravan.
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Horses were used to tow the boats along the canals.
▪ draw to pull a vehicle such as a carriage – used especially about horses doing this:
a carriage drawn by four horses
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a horse-drawn cart
II. haul 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
1 . a large amount of illegal or stolen goods:
The gang escaped with a haul worth hundreds of pounds.
haul of
A haul of stolen cars has been seized by police officers.
2 . long/slow haul something that takes a lot of time and effort:
At last we’ve won our freedom but it’s been a long bitter haul.
3 . for the long haul until something that will take a long time is done or achieved:
I’m in this for the long haul (=going to stay involved until the end) .
4 . over the long haul over a long period of time:
Over the long haul, these small increases add up.
5 . the amount of fish caught when fishing with a net
⇨ ↑ long-haul , ↑ short-haul