Gag
Gag verb - To discharge the contents of the stomach through the mouth.
Pull back
Pull back verb - Pull back or move away or backward.
Both terms in one sentence
- Done as a gag in the climax of Major League, where a regular Tribe fan and a punk Tribe fan excitedly hug, then they pull back, then they go back to hugging excitedly
Source: Accidental Hug -
A common gag in most of the Tex Avery cartoons would show the bad guy apparently holding up an armored car/stagecoach (or whatever was period-appropriate) only for the camera to pull back and show he's actually robbing an ice cream truck.
Source: Bad Humor Truck -
Couch Gag - Each episode started with an elaborately filmed sketch, following which the cameras would pull back to reveal the show title written in an unlikely place (the side of a hill, an aircraft carrier etc.).
Source: Series / Not Only... But Also
Cite this Source
Pull back and Gag. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 22, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/gag/pull_back
Gag & Pull back. N.p., 2016. Web. 22 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/gag/pull_back>.
Pull back or Gag. 2016. Accessed July 22, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/gag/pull_back.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "gag" and "pull back" have occurred on timeline