pull your weight
work as hard as the others
TRANSLATION
pull one's weight = seinen Beitrag leisten --- GOOGLE INDEX pull your weight: approximately 8,800,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
By now, it should go without saying: the redefining of the "role" of women means the redefining of the "role" of men. Women are PULLING MORE WEIGHT in the office and men are pitching in around the house.
(Forbes magazine)
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Above all other games, rugby depends on teamwork. If one of the 15 guys on the field is not PULLING HIS WEIGHT, behaving like a cog in the machine, then the whole lot grinds to a halt.
(The Guardian newspaper)
(Forbes magazine)
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Above all other games, rugby depends on teamwork. If one of the 15 guys on the field is not PULLING HIS WEIGHT, behaving like a cog in the machine, then the whole lot grinds to a halt.
(The Guardian newspaper)
Did you
know?
pull one's weight (also carry one's weight)
idiom
- to work as hard as other people in a group
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre once said something to the effect that "the only person who has time to rock the boat is the one who isn't rowing." This quote says a lot about the expression "pull one's weight."
The Online Etymology Dictionary says "pull one's weight" was first recorded in 1921. It stems from rowing, particularly competitive rowing, in which several people work together to propel the boat in the fastest and most efficient manner. To do this, the oars must work in unison, which requires that each person "pull his weight." The expression is often written as to pull one's "own" weight. Although the adjective "own" is superfluous in this case, it is nevertheless added for emphasis.
While this phrase appears to have originated from rowing, it could just as well derived from the sport of tug-of-war, in which two teams pull on the same rope in opposite directions in an attempt to bring the other team across a line. This also requires pulling one's weight.
Boats, and even the sport of rowing, have given us other figures of speech including:
- to be in the same boat = to be in the same situation (My financial situation may have gotten worse, but we are all in same boat)
- rock the boat = to cause trouble or disturb a normal environment (John has a reputation for rocking the boat from time to time)
- miss the boat = to lose an opportunity for success or not understand the importance of something (He's missing the boat by not getting his college degree)
- put/stick your oar in = to involve yourself in something when other people do not want you to (He's always sticking his oar in our discussions)
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SYNONYMS
contribute, do one's part, be a team player, pitch-in, chip-in
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SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"On this team we expect everyone to pull their weight."
idiom
- to work as hard as other people in a group
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre once said something to the effect that "the only person who has time to rock the boat is the one who isn't rowing." This quote says a lot about the expression "pull one's weight."
The Online Etymology Dictionary says "pull one's weight" was first recorded in 1921. It stems from rowing, particularly competitive rowing, in which several people work together to propel the boat in the fastest and most efficient manner. To do this, the oars must work in unison, which requires that each person "pull his weight." The expression is often written as to pull one's "own" weight. Although the adjective "own" is superfluous in this case, it is nevertheless added for emphasis.
While this phrase appears to have originated from rowing, it could just as well derived from the sport of tug-of-war, in which two teams pull on the same rope in opposite directions in an attempt to bring the other team across a line. This also requires pulling one's weight.
Boats, and even the sport of rowing, have given us other figures of speech including:
- to be in the same boat = to be in the same situation (My financial situation may have gotten worse, but we are all in same boat)
- rock the boat = to cause trouble or disturb a normal environment (John has a reputation for rocking the boat from time to time)
- miss the boat = to lose an opportunity for success or not understand the importance of something (He's missing the boat by not getting his college degree)
- put/stick your oar in = to involve yourself in something when other people do not want you to (He's always sticking his oar in our discussions)
---
SYNONYMS
contribute, do one's part, be a team player, pitch-in, chip-in
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"On this team we expect everyone to pull their weight."
