Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

tug

1 verb
     
tug1 past tense and past participle tugged, present participle tugging
1 [intransitive and transitive] to pull with one or more short, quick pulls:
The woman gently tugged his arm.
tug at/on something
Joe was tugging at her sleeve.
2 [transitive always + adverb/preposition] British English to pull a piece of clothing quickly onto your body
tug something on
Alice was tugging on a sweater.
3

tug at somebody's heart/heartstrings

written to make someone feel sympathy for someone or something
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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