bull rush

noun

: a direct forceful rush by a defensive player in football
bull-rush
ˈbu̇l-ˌrəsh How to pronounce bull rush (audio)
also ˈbəl-
verb

Examples of bull rush in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Further down the depth chart, Drew Sanders, healthy in this camp after missing all of last season due to injury, had a strong bull rush in the fourth quarter that ended in a sack of Falcons quarterback Jack Strand. — Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 15 Aug. 2026 Young is known to win with bull rush and heavy hands and play with extreme effort on every snap. — Jt Moodee Lockman, CBS News, 24 Apr. 2026 Rangy with a strong bull rush but not speedy. — Cam Inman, Mercury News, 19 Apr. 2026 The next level is building a deeper repertoire of counter moves in case his powerful bull rush gets stalled. — Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bull rush

Word History

First Known Use

1976, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bull rush was in 1976

Rhymes for bull rush

See All Rhymes for bull rush

Browse Nearby Words

bull runner
bull rush
bull screen
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bull rush.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bull%20rush. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All