pull yourself together

phraseB2Not compared — the two pools are counted one word at a time, so a phrase has no score

To pull yourself together is to force yourself calm after falling apart. Breathe, stop crying, and carry on.

The image is of somebody who has come to pieces gathering the parts back up. As an instruction to another person it is famously unhelpful and is said constantly anyway, particularly in older British writing, where it stood in for any discussion of feelings. Said to yourself it can be genuinely useful. Getting a grip is the blunter modern equivalent and is no kinder.

Definitions of pull yourself together

1phrasepull yourself togetherTo regain control of your emotions.B2
“You need to pull yourself together before they arrive.”

Practised in Idioms, A Man Called Ove

First appears in chapter 11 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word

← Vocabulary

pull yourself together

phraseB2Not compared — the two pools are counted one word at a time, so a phrase has no score

To pull yourself together is to force yourself calm after falling apart. Breathe, stop crying, and carry on.

Definitions of pull yourself together

1phrasepull yourself togetherTo regain control of your emotions.B2
“You need to pull yourself together before they arrive.”

Practised in Idioms, A Man Called Ove

First appears in chapter 11 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word