pull teeth

English

Pronunciation

  • Audio (Australia):(file)

Verb

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

  1. (dentistry) To extract teeth, usually because they are decayed or damaged.
  2. (idiomatic, intransitive) To do something that is especially difficult or effortful.
    Synonym: get blood out of a stone
    You will probably have to pull teeth to get a straight answer from a car salesman.
    • 2022 October 7, Emma Goldberg, “The Job Market Has Been Like Musical Chairs. Will the Music Stop?”, in The New York Times‎[1], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 27 August 2025:
      “We thought there would be a mad rush of students participating in these events, and it was like pulling teeth to get students to come out,” she recalled.

Usage notes

  • Most often seen in the forms pulling teeth or like pulling teeth.

Translations

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