pull apart

verb

"pull-apart" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“pull apart” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see pull, apart.

Corpus desk

Index EN-pull-apart · pull apart · English

pull apart · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "P" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for pull apart
PropertyValue
Headwordpull apart
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “pull apart” in English

pull apartfalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

pull apart is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 6 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for pull apart, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct English form is pull apart, spelled P-U-L-L- -A-P-A-R-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see pull, apart.
  2. 2
    To become separated as a result of pulling.
  3. 3
    To separate (people or animals that are fighting).
  4. 4
    To disassemble, dismantle, take apart (a machine or other mechanical device).
  5. 5
    To investigate rigorously the basis of (an idea or theory).
  6. 6
    To criticise harshly and in detail.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how pull apart appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. A frayed rope will pull apart under tension.
  2. The drunken brawlers had to be pulled apart.

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "pull apart"?
"pull apart" is spelled P-U-L-L- -A-P-A-R-T.
What does "pull apart" mean?
As a verb, "pull apart" means: Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see pull, apart.
What language does "pull apart" come from?
"pull apart" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list