A dictionary of Confusable Phrases: More Than 10,000 Idioms and Collocations

draw something in • pull something in
draw something in —
1
. bring smth. in by pulling: When the
fisherman drew in his net he found in it a remarkable fish. 2.
(of air) breathe in; inhale: Draw in a deep breath and let it
down someone’s street
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out slowly. 3. (of a piece of clothing ) draw tight or cause to
shrink: This billowing dress can be drawn in by adding a belt.
4. (of spending ) reduce: If prices continue to rise, we shall have
to draw in our spending even further.
pull something in —
1
. = draw something in 
1
: He ran out of
worms so after a while he pulled in his fishing line and walked
away. 2. (of an animal) control; restrain: Your horse is trying
to go too fast; you must pull him in. 3. (coll.) earn money:
You can pull in over 6,000 a year at that factory. 4. = draw
something in 4: You now have to pull in your spending some-
how.
draw something out • pull something out
draw something out—
1
. take smth. out; remove smth.: He
put his hand in the drawer, and drew out a gun. 2. stretch
smth.: Draw out the wire until it is very thin. 3. lengthen or
prolong smth.: The politician drew out his speech to almost
two hours. 4. take money from a bank account: I shall have
to draw out some more money to pay all these people. 5. for-
mulate a plan, program, etc.: The committee drew out a plan
for the reorganization.
pull something out—
1
. = draw something out 
1
: Before I could
see what he was doing, he had pulled out a gun. 2. = draw
something out 2: The wool from the sheep has to be pulled out
until it forms a thread. 3. produce particular facts, ideas, or
an answer: I hope you can pull out a better answer before the
end of the meeting.