pull someone's leg
English
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pull someone's leg
Where it comes from
The phrase from Scotland originally meant to make a fool of someone, often by cheating him. One theory is that it is derived from tripping someone by yanking or pulling his leg in order to make him stumble and look foolish.
verb pulls someone's leg · pulling someone's leg · pulled someone's leg
- To tease someone; to lead someone on; to goad someone into overreacting. I hadn't pulled Mrs. Barstow's leg for any of that stuff, she had just handed it to me on a platter, and that wasn't my fault.
- To extract money from someone (by taking out a loan or by swindling). I'm very glad to hear of his good fortune; but it's a deuced strange thing, for I saw him at the club last night and he never said a word of it. I'll pull his leg when I see him.
Translations
Every language
verb to tease someone
| Español | picar (a alguien), cizañear, meter cizaña, sacar pica, provocar, tomar el pelo |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 開玩笑 /开玩笑 kāiwánxiào, 嘲弄 cháonòng |
| Français | mener en bateau, faire marcher |
| Deutsch | jemanden durch den Kakao ziehen, jemanden in die Irre führen, verarschen, veralbern |
| Italiano | prendere in giro |
| Ελληνικά | δουλεύω doulévo |
| Русский | дразни́ть draznítʹ, подка́лывать podkályvatʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | nói sạo |
Talk about this word "pull someone's leg." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/pull%20someone's%20leg. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. pull someone's leg. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/pull%20someone's%20leg "pull someone's leg." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/pull%20someone's%20leg.Cite this
@misc{pull_someone_s_leg_2026,
title = {pull someone's leg},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/pull%20someone's%20leg},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
