pull punches
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
To hold back or restrain one's effort or criticism
Literally: to pull one's punches in boxing
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
The coach accused the boxer of pulling punches during the match
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “pull punches” mean?
To hold back or restrain one's effort or criticism Literally: to pull one's punches in boxing
Is “pull punches” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.