tug

Meanings

Verb

• to pull or drag with great effort
• to pull hard repeatedly
• to tow by tugboat
• to masturbate

Noun

• A sudden powerful pull.
• A tugboat.
• A kind of vehicle used for conveying timber and heavy articles.
• A trace, or drawing strap, of a harness.
• An iron hook of a hoisting tub, to which a tackle is affixed.
• An act of masturbation.

Origin

• From Middle English tuggen, toggen, from Old English togian ("to draw, drag"), from Proto-Germanic *tugōną ("to draw, tear"), from Proto-Indo-European *dewk- ("to pull"). Cognate with Middle Low German togen ("to draw"), Middle High German zogen ("to pull, tear off"), Icelandic toga ("to pull, draw"). Related to tow.