to receive or come to have possession, use, or enjoyment of

to get a birthday present; to get a pension.

to cause to be in one's possession or succeed in having available for one's use or enjoyment; obtain; acquire

to get a good price after bargaining; to get oil by drilling; to get information.

to go after, take hold of, and bring (something) for one's own or for another's purposes; fetch

Would you get the milk from the refrigerator for me?

to cause or cause to become, to do, to move, etc., as specified; effect

to get one's hair cut; to get a person drunk; to get a fire to burn; to get a dog out of a room.

to communicate or establish communication with over a distance; reach

You can always get me by telephone.

to hear or hear clearly

I didn't get your last name.

to acquire a mental grasp or command of; learn

to get a lesson.

to capture; seize

Get him before he escapes!

to receive as a punishment or sentence

to get a spanking; to get 20 years in jail.

to prevail on; influence or persuade

We'll get him to go with us.

to prepare; make ready

to get dinner.

(esp. of animals) to beget.

Informal . to affect emotionally

Her pleas got me.

to hit, strike, or wound

The bullet got him in the leg.

Informal . to kill.

Informal . to take vengeance on

I'll get you yet!

to catch or be afflicted with; come down with or suffer from

He got malaria while living in the tropics. She gets butterflies before every performance.

Informal . to puzzle; irritate; annoy

Their silly remarks get me.

Informal . to understand; comprehend

I don't get the joke. This report may be crystal-clear to a scientist, but I don't get it.

to come to a specified place; arrive; reach

to get home late.

to succeed, become enabled, or be permitted

You get to meet a lot of interesting people.

to become or to cause oneself to become as specified; reach a certain condition

to get angry; to get sick.

(used as an auxiliary verb fol. by a past participle to form the passive)

to get married; to get elected; to get hit by a car.

to succeed in coming, going, arriving at, visiting, etc. (usually fol. by away, in, into, out, etc. )

I don't get into town very often.

to bear, endure, or survive (usually fol. by through or over )

Can he get through another bad winter?

to earn money; gain.

Informal . to leave promptly; scram

He told us to get.

to start or enter upon the action of (fol. by a present participle expressing action)

to get moving; Get rolling.

an offspring or the total of the offspring, esp. of a male animal

the get of a stallion.

a return of a ball, as in tennis, that would normally have resulted in a point for the opponent.

British Slang .

something earned, as salary, profits, etc.

What's your week's get?

a child born out of wedlock. ?

get about,

to move about; be active

He gets about with difficulty since his illness.

to become known; spread

It was supposed to be a secret, but somehow it got about.

to be socially active

She's been getting about much more since her family moved to the city. Also, get around.

get across,

to make or become understandable; communicate

to get a lesson across to students.

to be convincing about; impress upon others

The fire chief got across forcefully the fact that turning in a false alarm is a serious offense.

get ahead, to be successful, as in business or society

She got ahead by sheer determination.

get ahead of,

to move forward of, as in traveling

The taxi got ahead of her after the light changed.

to surpass; outdo

He refused to let anyone get ahead of him in business.

get along,

to go away; leave.

get on.

get around,

to circumvent; outwit.

to ingratiate oneself with (someone) through flattery or cajolery.

to travel from place to place; circulate

I don't get around much anymore.

get about.

get at,

to reach; touch

to stretch in order to get at a top shelf.

to suggest, hint at, or imply; intimate

What are you getting at?

to discover; determine

to get at the root of a problem.

Informal . to influence by surreptitious or illegal means; bribe

The gangsters couldn't get at the mayor.

get away,

to escape; flee

He tried to get away, but the crowd was too dense.

to start out; leave

The racehorses got away from the starting gate.

get away with, to perpetrate or accomplish without detection or punishment

Some people lie and cheat and always seem to get away with it.

get by,

to succeed in going past

to get by a police barricade.

to manage to exist, survive, continue in business, etc., in spite of difficulties.

to evade the notice of

He doesn't let much get by him.

get down,

to bring or come down; descend

The kitten climbed the tree, but then couldn't get down again.

to concentrate; attend

to get down to the matter at hand.

to depress; discourage; fatigue

Nothing gets me down so much as a rainy day.

to swallow

The pill was so large that he couldn't get it down.

to relax and enjoy oneself completely; be uninhibited in one's enjoyment

getting down with a bunch of old friends.

get in,

to go into a place; enter

He forgot his key and couldn't get in.

to arrive; come

They both got in on the same train.

to become associated with

He got in with a bad crowd.

to be chosen or accepted, as for office, membership, etc.

As secretary of the club, his friend made sure that he got in.

to become implicated in

By embezzling money to pay his gambling debts quickly, he was getting in further and further.

get off,

to escape the consequences of or punishment for one's actions.

to help (someone) escape punishment

A good lawyer might get you off.

to begin a journey; leave

He got off on the noon flight.

to leave (a train, plane, etc.); dismount from (a horse); alight.

to tell (a joke); express (an opinion)

The comedian got off a couple of good ones.

Informal . to have the effrontery

Where does he get off telling me how to behave?

Slang

Vulgar to experience orgasm.

to experience or cause to experience a high from or as if from a drug.

to cause to feel pleasure, enthusiasm, or excitement

a new rock group that gets everyone off.

get on or along,

to make progress; proceed; advance.

to have sufficient means to manage, survive, or fare.

to be on good terms; agree

She simply can't get on with her brothers.

to advance in age

He is getting on in years.

get out,

to leave (often fol. by of )

Get out of here! We had to get out of the bus at San Antonio.

to become publicly known

We mustn't let this story get out.

to withdraw or retire (often fol. by of )

He decided to get out of the dry goods business.

to produce or complete

Let's get this work out!

get over,

to recover from

to get over an illness.

get across.

get through,

to succeed, as in meeting, reaching, or contacting by telephone (usually fol. by to )

I tried to call you last night, but I couldn't get through.

to complete; finish

How he ever got through college is a mystery.

to make oneself understood

One simply cannot get through to her.

get to,

to get in touch or into communication with; contact

It was too late by the time he got to the authorities.

Informal . to make an impression on; affect

This music really gets to you.

to begin

When he gets to telling stories about the war, there's no stopping him.

get back

to come back; return

When will you get back?

to recover; regain

He got back his investment with interest.

to be revenged

She waited for a chance to get back at her accuser.

get even. even 1 ( def. 26 ) .

get going

to begin; act

They wanted to get going on the construction of the house.

to increase one's speed; make haste

If we don't get going, we'll never arrive in time.

get it

Informal .

to be punished or reprimanded

You'll get it for breaking that vase!

to understand or grasp something

This is just between us, get it?

get it off

Slang

Vulgar to experience orgasm.

get it on

Informal . to work or perform with satisfying harmony or energy or develop a strong rapport, as in music

a rock group really getting it on with the audience.

Slang

Vulgar to have sexual intercourse.

get it up

Slang

Vulgar to achieve an erection of the penis.

get off on

Slang . to become enthusiastic about or excited by

After years of indifference, she's getting off on baseball.

get round. get around.

get the lead out. lead 2 ( def. 15 ) .

get there

to reach one's goal; succeed

He wanted to be a millionaire but he died before he got there.

get together

to accumulate; gather

to get together a portfolio of 20 stocks.

to congregate; meet

The alumnae chapter gets together twice a year.

to come to an accord; agree

They simply couldn't get together on matters of policy.

get up

to sit up or stand; arise.

to rise from bed.

to ascend or mount.

to prepare; arrange; organize

to get up an exhibit.

to draw upon; marshal; rouse

to get up one's courage.

to acquire a knowledge of.

(to a horse) go! go ahead! go faster!

to dress, as in a costume or disguise

She got herself up as an astronaut.

to produce in a specified style, as a book

It was got up in brown leather with gold endpapers.

has or have got

to possess or own; have

She's got a new car. Have you got the tickets?

must (fol. by an infinitive)

He's got to get to a doctor right away.

to suffer from

Have you got a cold?

verb

lose , miss , pass

verb

access , achieve , acquire , arrive , ascertain , gain access , get hold of , reach , aim , hint , imply , lead up to , purpose , suggest