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get definition

get (get; also, although it is considered nonstandard by some, git)

transitive verb got, gotten got′·ten or got, getting get′·ting

  1. to come into the state of having; become the owner or receiver of; receive, win, gain, obtain, acquire, etc.
  2. to reach; arrive at to get home early
  3. to set up communication with, as by radio or telephone to get Paris
    1. to go and bring
    2. to bring go get your books
    1. to catch; capture; gain hold of
    2. to become afflicted with (a disease)
  6. to learn; commit to memory
  7. to discover to be as the result of experiment or calculation add 2 and 2 to get 4
  8. to influence or persuade (a person) to do something get him to leave
  9. to cause to act in a certain way get the door to shut properly
    1. to cause to be to get one's hands dirty
    2. to cause to arrive at get the copy to the printer
  11. to take (oneself) away: often used absolutely
  12. to be sentenced to to get ten years for robbery
  13. to prepare to get lunch
  14. beget: said of animals
  15. to manage or contrive to get to do something
  16. Informal to be obliged to; feel a necessity to: with have or has he's got to pass the test
  17. Informal to own; possess: with have or has he's got red hair
  18. Informal to be or become the master of; esp.,
    1. to overpower; have complete control of his illness finally got him
    2. to puzzle; baffle this problem gets me
    3. to take into custody, wound, or kill
    4. ☆ Baseball to put (an opponent) out, as by catching a batted ball
  19. Informal to strike; hit the blow got him in the eye
  20. Informal to catch the meaning or import of; understand
  21. Slang to cause an emotional response in; irritate, please, thrill, etc. her singing gets me
  22. ☆ Slang to notice or observe get the look on his face

Etymology: ME geten < ON geta, to get, beget, akin to OE -gietan (see beget, forget), Ger -gessen in vergessen, forget < IE base *ghend-, to seize, get hold of > L (pre)hendere, to grasp, understand

intransitive verb

  1. to come, go, or arrive to get to work on time
  2. to be or become; come to be (doing something); come to be (in a situation, condition, etc.) to get caught in the rain, get in touch with me
  3. Informal to leave at once: commonly pronounced (git) when used in the imperative or infinitive

noun

  1. the young of an animal; offspring; breed
  2. a begetting
  3. Tennis, etc. a retrieving of a shot seemingly out of reach

Related Forms:

get Idioms

get about

  1. to move from place to place
  2. to go to many social events, places, etc.
  3. to circulate widely, as news

get across

Informal
  1. to clarify or explain convincingly
  2. to be clear; be understood
  3. to succeed, as in making oneself understood or conveying one's personality to an audience

get after

Informal
  1. to pursue or attack
  2. to urge or goad persistently

get along

get anywhere

to have any success or make any progress

get around

  1. to get about (in all senses)
  2. ☆ to circumvent or overcome
  3. to influence, outwit, or gain favor with by cajoling, flattering, etc.

get around to

  1. to find time or occasion for
  2. to get started on, esp. after a delay

get at

  1. to approach or reach
  2. ☆ to apply oneself to (work, etc.)
  3. to find out
  4. to imply or suggest
  5. Informal to influence by bribery or intimidation

get away

  1. to go away; leave
  2. to escape
  3. to start, as in a race

get away with

☆
Informal to succeed in doing or taking without being discovered or punished

get back

  1. to return
  2. to recover
  3. ☆ Slang to retaliate; get revenge: usually with at

get behind

  1. to move to the rear of
  2. to endorse or support
  3. to fall into arrears, as in making a payment

get by

  1. to be fairly adequate or acceptable
  2. ☆ Informal to succeed without being discovered or punished
  3. Informal to survive; manage

get down

  1. to descend
  2. to dismount
  3. ☆ Slang
    1. to relax and take part in social activity, play music, dance, etc.
    2. to act or behave naturally, casually, without pretense, etc.

get down to

to begin to consider or act on

get in

  1. to enter
  2. to join or cause to join (an activity, group, etc.)
    also get in on
  3. to arrive
  4. to put in
  5. to become familiar or closely associated (with)

get it

Informal
  1. ☆ to understand
  2. to be punished

get it on

Slang to have sexual intercourse: often with with

get nowhere

to make no progress; accomplish nothing

get off

  1. to come off, down, or out of
  2. to leave; go away
  3. to take off
  4. to escape
    1. to help escape sentence or punishment
    2. to lessen the sentence or punishment of
  6. to start, as in a race
  7. ☆ to utter (a joke, retort, etc.)
  8. to have a holiday; have time off
  9. Slang to experience euphoria, an orgasm, etc.

get (someone) off

Slang to cause to experience euphoria, intoxication, an orgasm, etc.

get off on

Slang to experience or receive pleasure and satisfaction from; enjoy

get on

  1. to go on or into
  2. to put on
  3. to proceed; make progress
  4. to grow older
  5. to succeed, as in making a living
  6. to agree; be compatible

get on for

Brit. to approach (a time, amount, age, etc.)

get (right) on it

Informal to begin doing a task (immediately)

get out

  1. to go out
  2. to go away
  3. to take out
  4. ☆ to become no longer a secret
  5. to publish

get out of

  1. to go out from
    1. to escape from or avoid
    2. to help escape from or avoid
  3. to go beyond (sight, etc.)
  4. to find out from, as by force

get over

  1. to recover from
  2. to forget or overlook
  3. Informal to get across (in all senses)

get one's own back

get somewhere

to accomplish something; succeed

get so (that)

☆
Informal to reach the point or state where

get there

☆ Informal to succeed

get through

  1. to finish
  2. to manage to survive
  3. to secure favorable action upon (a bill, etc.)
  4. to establish communication, or make oneself clear (to)

get to

  1. to succeed in reaching or communicating with
  2. ☆ to influence, as by bribery or intimidation
    1. to stir the emotions of
    2. to annoy or irritate

get together

  1. to bring together; accumulate
  2. to come together; gather
  3. ☆ Informal to reach an agreement

get up

  1. to rise (from a chair, from sleep, etc.)
  2. to contrive; organize
  3. to dress elaborately
  4. to advance; make progress
  5. to climb or mount
  6. ☆ go forward: used as a command to a horse

get with

to go along with: often in the phrase get with the program, to go along with the assigned or predetermined plan of action

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