Word: haul Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English hālen, hailen, haulen, halien (“to drag, pull; to draw up”), from Old French haler (“to haul, pull”), from Frankish *halōn (“to drag, fetch, haul”) or Middle Dutch halen (“to drag, fetch, haul”), possibly merging with Old English *halian (“to haul, drag”); all from Proto-Germanic *halōną, *halēną, *hulōną (“to call, fetch, summon”), from Proto-Indo-European *kelh₁- (“to call, cry, summon”). The noun is derived from the verb. Cognates The word is cognate with Danish hale (“to haul”), Middle Dutch halen (“to draw, fetch, haul”), Dutch halen (“to fetch, bring, haul”), Old Frisian halia, Saterland Frisian halen (“to draw, haul, pull”), Low German halen (“to draw, pull”), Old High German halôn, holôn, German holen (“to fetch, get”), Norwegian hale (“to haul”), Old Saxon halôn (“to fetch, get”), Swedish hala (“to hale, haul, pull, tug”), and related to Old English ġeholian (“to get, obtain”). Pronunciation: /hɔːl/, /hoːl/, /hɔl/, /hɑl/, /hɒl/ 1. An act of hauling or pulling, particularly with force; a (violent) pull or tug. Example: So I rigged my big salmon rod, and when I heard him splashing in the shallows across the pool, I put a few Alka Seltzer tablets onto the hook and cast into the darkness. There was a splash and a haul on my line, and this time I struck with both hands and then began pulling and horsing as hard as I could to bring this big fish over to my side. Example: Then another series of hollered orders, a heave on the wheel, and the brig did a circuit of the flagship's bow, perilously close to the long bowsprit. A haul at the braces and back along the larboard side of the Vincennes the Swallow ran, losing speed but still sending foam seething along the hull of the sloop of war. 2. The distance over which something is hauled or transported, especially if long. Example: Getting to his place was a real haul. Example: I find long-haul travel by airplane tiring. 3. An amount of something that has been taken, especially of fish, illegal loot, or items purchased on a shopping trip. Example: The robber’s haul was over thirty items. Example: The trawler landed a ten-ton haul. 4. Ellipsis of haul video (“video posted on the Internet consisting of someone showing and talking about recently purchased items”). Labels: Internet, abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis Example: Then there are the YouTube hauls, the oddly viral videos of influencers showing off what they got for Christmas. In her 2017 haul that's been watched 1.7 million times, Olivia Jade – a 19-year-old beauty and fashion tipster and the daughter of actress Lori Loughlin – sat on a plush white bed in polar bear pyjamas and a Santa hat. One by one, she showed off a bottle of Valentino perfume ("sweet mixed with floral"), a cropped, purple fuzzy sweater from Urban Outfitters, bikinis, sneakers, jeans, underwear, high heels, dresses, tops and more. 5. A bundle of many threads to be tarred. Example: When the collected yarns number about 400, they are coiled up in a haul, and are ready either for tarring, or laying into white ropes. Previous to the haul being taken up for tarring, there is a slight turn put into it to keep it from getting entangled in the tar-kettle. […] 400 of such threads constituted a haul, and weighed 12 cwt. 2 qrs, and when tarred 15 cwt. 6. Four goals scored by one player in a game. Labels: UK Example: Four goals scored by a single player in a match can be described as a 'haul', while five goals is unofficially a 'glut'.