v. 1 thrust, shove, drive, move, set in motion, get moving, propel; press Push the boat away from the pier He pushed the door shut. 2 press, depress Push the button if you want anything 3 shove, thrust, elbow, shoulder, force, jostle, nudge We pushed our way through the crowd 4 urge, encourage, press, induce, ask, persuade, get, egg on, press, prod, spur, goad, rouse, prompt, incite, move, motivate, stimulate, influence, impel, make, compel, force, dragoon, coerce, constrain; badger, hound, pester, harass, plague, nag, browbeat; beg, importune, entreat His family is pushing him to find work I'll soon have the work done, but stop pushing me. 5 force, strain, overstrain, tax, overtax, burden, overburden You might have got away with it this time, but don't push your luck 6 promote, publicize, advertise, boost, propagandize, puff, Colloq plug, Slang ballyhoo, hype Because we have too much stock, we are pushing suntan oil this week 7 push about or around. intimidate, bully, cow, domineer, tyrannize, bullyrag, torment, force, coerce Don't push people about if you want them to do what you want 8 push away. reject, deny, brush off or aside, give (someone) the cold shoulder, rebuff, distance oneself from She pushes everyone away and then wonders why she has no friends 9 push off. a shove off, sail away or off We stepped into the dinghy and pushed off b leave, depart, go away, Colloq light out, take off, hit the road, skedaddle, scram, make oneself scarce, Slang beat it I have to push off now if I'm to make that train 10 push on or forward or along. move onwards or onward or ahead or forward, continue, proceed, advance, press on or onwards or onward If we stay the night here, we shall have to push on first thing in the morning 11 push through. force, press, Colloq railroad The bill was pushed through committee without delay 12 push (up) daisies. be dead (and buried), be six feet under Her husband's pushing up daisies
n. 13 shove, thrust, nudge My car needs a push to get it started 14 effort, energy, dynamism, drive, force, enterprise, ambition, vigour, determination, initiative, eagerness, spirit, enthusiasm, zeal, verve, Colloq get-up-and-go, zing, zip, gumption, go If he had a bit more push, he might succeed 15 campaign, attack, assault, advance, offensive, charge, onslaught, foray, sortie, invasion, incursion, raid, sally, blitzkrieg, blitz, strike The troops were massed along the coast, ready for the big push inland 16 the push. dismissal, notice, Colloq marching orders, Chiefly Brit the sack, the boot, Chiefly US and Canadian walking papers, a pink slip He'd been with the company for twenty years, but they still gave him the push when sales fell