Word.ws English Dictionary

pulling punches

pulling punches is the present participle and gerund of pull punches.

Meaning of pull punches

Verb

pull punches (third-person singular simple present pulls punches, present participle pulling punches, simple past and past participle pulled punches)

  1. To avoid using a high level of force when punching.
    • Traditionally on Okinawa (if 'traditionally' is the right word to use), protectors had been worn during sparring practise because the trainees believed that, to be effective, one should not train to pull punches.2017, Mark D Bishop, Zen Odyssey, An Okinawan Karate & Martial Arts Journey, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 228
  2. (figuratively) To act with reserve; especially, to word something delicately to avoid giving offense or inciting anger.
    • Near-synonym: mince words

Questions about pulling punches

What is pulling punches the present participle and gerund of?
Pulling punches is the present participle and gerund of pull punches.

Words near pulling punches in the dictionary

  1. pulling out of the bag
  2. pulling out of the fire
  3. pulling out of the hat
  4. pulling over
  5. pulling power
  6. pulling punches
  7. pulling rank
  8. pulling round
  9. pulling short
  10. pulling short up
  11. pulling someone down a peg

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: pulling punches (page history and authors); pull punches (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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