English

Verb

pull a ‎(third-person singular simple present pulls a, present participle pulling a, simple past and past participle pulled a)

1. (informal, transitive, followed by a person's name, idiomatic) To emulate a behaviour generally attributed to the individual named.

   He pulled an Elvis and got really fat.‎

   • 2011 January 1, Boris Kapusta, “Re: Obama Most Admired”, in rec.crafts.metalworking, Usenet:

     You must be smart. Perhaps you have a degree. Find that diploma yet? Still waiting for your "proof". Or are you going to pull an Obama on us?

Usage notes

Can either refer to the actions of a famous person, real or fictitious, that would be understood by most anyone, or to the actions of an individual known by the speaker and his audience. If "Jane Doe" is known for hiccuping when nervous, you could say: I got reprimanded for pulling a Jane Doe.

See also

do a...

Anagrams

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