Michelle Obama Speaks Emotionally About Family And Country

What does “pull it off” mean in English?

To pull something off means to succeed at something so difficult that people expected you to fail. Michelle Obama uses it about her husband: “always dreaming probably way too big, but always pulling it off.” The two halves work together — the dreams are too big, and he still makes them real. Nothing is pulled and nothing comes off; the phrase only means to succeed when success looked unlikely.

You will hear it in praise and in doubt: “I never thought you’d pull it off.” “It’s a crazy plan — can we really pull it off?” It also takes objects directly: pull off a win, pull off a surprise party. The tone is informal but safe everywhere, and it always carries respect: the thing was hard, and you did it anyway.