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and how he had pulled down to Caversham since lunch, …

English translation: pull (an oar or sculls) in rowing; propel (a boat) by rowing, row; transport or convey in a boat by rowing.

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:to pull
Selected answer:pull (an oar or sculls) in rowing; propel (a boat) by rowing, row; transport or convey in a boat by rowing.
Entered by: Tony M

08:45 Jul 14, 2009
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
Art/Literary - Poetry & Literature
English term or phrase: and how he had pulled down to Caversham since lunch, …
Dear Colleagues, it's from "The Forsyte Saga":

He was telling them now how he had "pipped the pro—a charmin' fellow, playin' a very good game," at the last hole this morning; and how he had pulled down to Caversham since lunch, and trying to incite Prosper Profond to play him a set of tennis after tea—do him good—"keep him fit.

Thank you in advance!
Michael Kislov
Russian Federation
Local time: 03:20
he had rowed down the R. Thames to the village of Caversham
Explanation:
This chap sounds like a sporting type, so it seems extremely likely that this is the rather uncommon meaning of the verb 'to pull', with the sense of 'to row (a boat)'

In those days, rowing down the Thames would undoubtedly have been a pleasant, not to say eminently practical way, of reaching Caversham — which at that time was quite probably no more than a village on the banks of the Thames.

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Note added at 5 hrs (2009-07-14 14:21:38 GMT)
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Quite apart from the logic of the physical exertion that Jim has highlighted for us, the verb 'to pull' has an established use with the sense 'to row', whereas I don't believe it is commonly used in the more general sense of 'to go / travel' etc., and I see no reason for the author to have used it in a quirky or figurative way with an oblique meaning here.

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Note added at 7 hrs (2009-07-14 16:40:22 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Just out of interest, here's the relevant definition from NS OED:

1 v.t. e Pull (an oar or sculls) in rowing; propel (a boat) by rowing, row; transport or convey in a boat by rowing. E19.
Selected response from:

Tony M
France
Local time: 02:20
Grading comment
Selected automatically based on peer agreement.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
3 +4he had rowed down the R. Thames to the village of Caversham
Tony M
4 +1travelled
kmtext
5 -1he pulled his golf trolly after him
Alexandra Taggart
Summary of reference entries provided
Referencing the passage in the book helps makes the answer clear.
Demi Ebrite

  

Answers


14 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
and how he had pulled down to caversham since lunch, …
travelled


Explanation:
He'd beaten the golf pro in the morning and travelled to Caversham after lunch to persuade Prosper to play tennis.
The journey could have been either by road or river as Caversham is on the Thames in Reading.

kmtext
United Kingdom
Local time: 01:20
Meets criteria
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in GaelicGaelic
PRO pts in category: 56
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you, kmtext!


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Mark Nathan: I have no idea if it applies here, but "pulled" can refer to rowing (pulling the oars).
1 min
  -> I agree with you on that, but I thought I'd leave it fairly general.
neutral  Tony M: I think the specific use of the verb 'to pull' does clearly indicate that he rowed; what an energetic chappy he is!
3 mins
  -> As above. I'm less energetic and it's chucking it down, so I'll just drive there later!
neutral  Jim Tucker (X): Not here -- context requires a form of physical exertion; speaker is bragging of his prowess. "Since lunch" - and he did it fast.
5 hrs
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16 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +4
he had pulled down to Caversham
he had rowed down the R. Thames to the village of Caversham


Explanation:
This chap sounds like a sporting type, so it seems extremely likely that this is the rather uncommon meaning of the verb 'to pull', with the sense of 'to row (a boat)'

In those days, rowing down the Thames would undoubtedly have been a pleasant, not to say eminently practical way, of reaching Caversham — which at that time was quite probably no more than a village on the banks of the Thames.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 5 hrs (2009-07-14 14:21:38 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Quite apart from the logic of the physical exertion that Jim has highlighted for us, the verb 'to pull' has an established use with the sense 'to row', whereas I don't believe it is commonly used in the more general sense of 'to go / travel' etc., and I see no reason for the author to have used it in a quirky or figurative way with an oblique meaning here.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 7 hrs (2009-07-14 16:40:22 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Just out of interest, here's the relevant definition from NS OED:

1 v.t. e Pull (an oar or sculls) in rowing; propel (a boat) by rowing, row; transport or convey in a boat by rowing. E19.

Tony M
France
Local time: 02:20
Meets criteria
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 260
Grading comment
Selected automatically based on peer agreement.
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you, Tony!


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Jim Tucker (X): yes- has to be a form of physical exertion in this context (golf, tennis -- cough-- tea)//yes, umm, how to put it...umm -- the meaning of the verb is also a factor.
4 hrs
  -> Thanks, Jim! Yes, from the tenor of the conversation...
agree  B D Finch
5 hrs
  -> Thanks, Barbara!
agree  Demi Ebrite: He rowed, 'pulling' oars.
8 hrs
  -> Thanks, Demi! And for your very helpful reference entry too!
agree  juvera: The river is still quite pleasant at Cavesham, a friend of mine used to have a houeboat there. :-)
12 hrs
  -> Thanks, Juvera! Yes, indeed, my Aunt had a house there until quite recently, delightful area (good pubs!).
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14 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): -1
and how he had pulled down to caversham since lunch, …
he pulled his golf trolly after him


Explanation:
/

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Note added at 15 hrs (2009-07-14 23:46:27 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

...all the way down to Caversham. For the sake of exercising.

Alexandra Taggart
Russian Federation
Local time: 03:20
Meets criteria
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in RussianRussian
PRO pts in category: 14

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
disagree  Tony M: There is no mention of a golf trolley [note it is usually called a caddie in EN] in the source text; your c/l of 5 seems absurdly high, with no refs. of any kind to support your suggestion
18 days
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Reference comments


9 hrs peer agreement (net): +2
Reference: Referencing the passage in the book helps makes the answer clear.

Reference information:
In the book, there are several paragraphs just before this one in question, in which Imogen's opinion of Jack, as set forth by the narrator, describes Jacks extreme 'fitness' - it's a trademark of Jack's persona; he's a fitness nut, both admired and envied. Rowing is one of his many sports. And yes, there was some satire in the way Jack packed in so many rigorous activities in a short span of time.

You can read the passage in the URL.


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Note added at 9 hrs (2009-07-14 18:26:55 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Oh, sorry! I placed the URL in the wrong place. . . Doing this from my phone is almosy silly.

Http://www.fullbooks.com/The-Forsyte-Saga-Complete17.html

Example sentence(s):
  • http://www.fullbooks.com/The-Forsyte-Saga-Complete17.html
Demi Ebrite
United States
Meets criteria
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 20
Note to reference poster
Asker: Thank you, Demi! You're a great help! :)


Peer comments on this reference comment (and responses from the reference poster)
agree  Tony M: Thanks, Demi!
4 hrs
  -> Thank you, Tony!
agree  Alexandra Taggart
5 hrs
  -> Thank you, Alexandra!
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