pulling ahead
Moving into first
Pulling ahead means gaining a lead over others, whether in a race, competition, or any comparative situation.
The phrase evokes forward motion that opens distance between you and those behind: She's pulling ahead in the polls, Our team pulled ahead in the third quarter.
It implies ongoing effort—you're not just ahead, you're actively widening the gap.
- progressingMoving toward completion
- making stridesAdvancing considerably toward goals
- proceedingAct of going forward
- advancingMoving in forward direction
- gaining groundMaking steady headway
edge out · leading · out in front · outperform · outpace · move forward · surge · overtake · accelerate · pioneer · surpass · excel · improve · spearhead · dominate · achieve · propel · climb
- outperformingsurpassing, exceeding, excelling, outperforming, outdoing
- front-runnersfront-runner, frontrunner, leader, first place, top spot
- finish line expressionsphoto finish, down to the wire, home stretch, final stretch, final lap
- progressprogress, in progress, promotion, raise, making progress
pulling aheadfalling behind
dropping back · falling back · losing ground · trailing · lagging behind
pulling aheadregressing
Returning to earlier state
sliding back · stalling · fading · flagging · losing steam
pull, pulling, pulled, pulls, puller, ahead, head, heads, headed