noun

• (slang) A masturbation session.
  "He rested his hand on his bare chest, an innocent enough spot, but soon it drifted of its own accord down his stomach to slide beneath the waistband of his briefs. Fine. A quick yank would relieve the sexual tension that simmered in him."
• (slang, MLE) alternative form of shank (“stabbing weapon”).
  "Tell my young bad, she can vouch for me I was only thirteen with a yank on me"

verb

• (transitive) To pull (something) with a quick, strong action.
  "Now a white-backed rams its head down the wildebeest’s throat and yanks out an eight-inch length of trachea, ribbed like a vacuum hose."
• (transitive, informal) To remove from distribution.
  "They yanked the product as soon as they learned it was unsafe."

noun

• (often derogatory) Alternative letter-case form of Yank (“Yankee”).

noun

• (US) A Yankee, a Northerner: someone from the Northern United States, especially from New England.
  "Halt! come down there, you Yanks, come down!"
• (slang, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Canada, UK, sometimes derogatory ethnic slur, by extension) An American: someone from the United States.
  "“This time,” he General Alphonse-Pierre Juin] told the Yanks, “you have not crossed to win new victories but to preserve peace. […]”"