pushmi-pullyu
/ˌpʊʃmɪˈpʊljuː/(also pushme-pullya, pushme-pullyou, pushmi-pullyou)
noun
An imaginary creature resembling a llama or antelope, but with a head at either end of the body, pointing away from the torso, so that the creature always faces in two directions at once. Hence in extended and allusive use.
- Widely popularized by the film version of Doctor Dolittle (1967)..
Origin
1920s. From push + me + pull + you, with various arbitrary respellings of the pronoun forms. Coined by Hugh Lofting in Doctor Dolittle.