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• get
  get

  verb (used with object)

  to receive or come to have possession, use, or enjoyment of.
• GeT
  GeT

  abbreviation

  Greenwich Electronic Time

get

¹ American  

[get] / gɛt /

verb (used with object)

• gets,
  present (3rd person singular)
• got,
  past participle,  past
• gat,
  past (Archaic)
• gotten,
  past participle
• getting
  present participle

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

   to get a birthday present; to get a pension.

2. 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.

   Synonyms:

   gain, win

3. 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?

4. 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.

5. to communicate or establish communication with over a distance; reach.

   You can always get me by telephone.

6. to hear or hear clearly.

   I didn't get your last name.

7. to acquire a mental grasp or command of; learn.

   to get a lesson.

   Synonyms:

   grasp, apprehend

8. to capture; seize.

   Get him before he escapes!

9. to receive as a punishment or sentence.

   to get a spanking;

   to get 20 years in jail.

10. to prevail on; influence or persuade.

    We'll get him to go with us.

    Synonyms:

    dispose, induce

11. to prepare; make ready.

    to get dinner.

12. (especially of animals) to beget.

    Synonyms:

    engender

13. Informal. to affect emotionally.

    Her pleas got me.

14. to hit, strike, or wound.

    The bullet got him in the leg.

15. Informal. to kill.

16. Informal. to take vengeance on.

    I'll get you yet!

17. 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.

18. Informal. to puzzle; irritate; annoy.

    Their silly remarks get me.

19. 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.

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verb (used without object)

• gets,
  present (3rd person singular)
• got,
  past participle,  past
• gat,
  past (Archaic)
• gotten,
  past participle
• getting
  present participle

1. to come to a specified place; arrive; reach.

   to get home late.

2. to succeed, become enabled, or be permitted.

   You get to meet a lot of interesting people.

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

   to get angry;

   to get sick.

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

   to get married;

   to get elected;

   to get hit by a car.

5. to succeed in coming, going, arriving at, visiting, etc. (usually followed byaway, in, into, out, etc. ).

   I don't get into town very often.

6. to bear, endure, or survive (usually followed by through orover ).

   Can he get through another bad winter?

7. to earn money; gain.

8. Informal. to leave promptly; scram.

   He told us to get.

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

   to get moving;

   Get rolling.

noun

1. an offspring or the total of the offspring, especially of a male animal.

   the get of a stallion.

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

3. British Slang.

   1. something earned, as salary, profits, etc..

      What's your week's get?

   2. a child born out of wedlock.

verb phrase

1. get away

   1. to escape; flee.

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

   2. to start out; leave.

      The racehorses got away from the starting gate.

2. get through

   1. to succeed, as in meeting, reaching, or contacting by telephone (usually followed byto ).

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

   2. to complete; finish.

      How he ever got through college is a mystery.

   3. to make oneself understood.

      One simply cannot get through to her.

3. get in

   1. to go into a place; enter.

      He forgot his key and couldn't get in.

   2. to arrive; come.

      They both got in on the same train.

   3. to become associated with.

      He got in with a bad crowd.

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

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

   5. to become implicated in.

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

4. get around

   1. to circumvent; outwit.

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

   3. to travel from place to place; circulate.

      I don't get around much anymore.

   4. get about.

5. get along

   1. to go away; leave.

   2. get on.

6. get out

   1. to leave (often followed byof ).

      Get out of here!

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

   2. to become publicly known.

      We mustn't let this story get out.

   3. to withdraw or retire (often followed byof ).

      He decided to get out of the dry goods business.

   4. to produce or complete.

      Let's get this work out!

7. get about Also get around

   1. to move about; be active.

      He gets about with difficulty since his illness.

   2. to become known; spread.

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

   3. to be socially active.

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

8. get by

   1. to succeed in going past.

      to get by a police barricade.

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

   3. to evade the notice of.

      He doesn't let much get by him.

9. get to

   1. to get in touch or into communication with; contact.

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

   2. Informal. to make an impression on; affect.

      This music really gets to you.

   3. to begin.

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

10. get off

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

    2. to help (someone) escape punishment.

       A good lawyer might get you off.

    3. to begin a journey; leave.

       He got off on the noon flight.

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

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

       The comedian got off a couple of good ones.

    6. Informal. to have the effrontery.

       Where does he get off telling me how to behave?

    7. Slang: Vulgar. to experience orgasm.

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

    9. to cause to feel pleasure, enthusiasm, or excitement.

       a new rock group that gets everyone off.

11. get at

    1. to reach; touch.

       to stretch in order to get at a top shelf.

    2. to suggest, hint at, or imply; intimate.

       What are you getting at?

    3. to discover; determine.

       to get at the root of a problem.

    4. Informal. to influence by surreptitious or illegal means; bribe.

       The gangsters couldn't get at the mayor.

12. get on / along

    1. to make progress; proceed; advance.

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

    3. to be on good terms; agree.

       She simply can't get on with her brothers.

    4. to advance in age.

       He is getting on in years.

13. get down

    1. to bring or come down; descend.

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

    2. to concentrate; attend.

       to get down to the matter at hand.

    3. to depress; discourage; fatigue.

       Nothing gets me down so much as a rainy day.

    4. to swallow.

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

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

       getting down with a bunch of old friends.

14. get ahead of

    1. to move forward of, as in traveling.

       The taxi got ahead of her after the light changed.

    2. to surpass; outdo.

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

15. get across

    1. to make or become understandable; communicate.

       to get a lesson across to students.

    2. 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.

16. get away with to perpetrate or accomplish without detection or punishment.

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

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

    She got ahead by sheer determination.

18. get over

    1. to recover from.

       to get over an illness.

    2. get across.

idioms

1. get back,

   1. to come back; return.

      When will you get back?

   2. to recover; regain.

      He got back his investment with interest.

   3. to be revenged.

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

2. get even. even.

3. get round. get around.

4. get it off, to experience orgasm.

5. get there, to reach one's goal; succeed.

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

6. get it on,

   1. 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.

   2. Slang: Vulgar. to have sexual intercourse.

7. get it,

   1. to be punished or reprimanded.

      You'll get it for breaking that vase!

   2. to understand or grasp something.

      This is just between us, get it?

8. get up,

   1. to sit up or stand; arise.

   2. to rise from bed.

   3. to ascend or mount.

   4. to prepare; arrange; organize.

      to get up an exhibit.

   5. to draw upon; marshal; rouse.

      to get up one's courage.

   6. to acquire a knowledge of.

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

   8. to dress, as in a costume or disguise.

      She got herself up as an astronaut.

   9. to produce in a specified style, as a book.

      It was got up in brown leather with gold endpapers.

9. get off on, to become enthusiastic about or excited by.

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

10. has / have got,

    1. to possess or own; have.

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

    2. must (followed by an infinitive).

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

    3. to suffer from.

       Have you got a cold?

11. get going,

    1. to begin; act.

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

    2. to increase one's speed; make haste.

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

12. get together,

    1. to accumulate; gather.

       to get together a portfolio of 20 stocks.

    2. to congregate; meet.

       The alumnae chapter gets together twice a year.

    3. to come to an accord; agree.

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

13. get it up, to achieve an erection of the penis.

14. get the lead out. lead.

get ² American  

[get] / gɛt /

noun

Hebrew.

• gittin,
  plural
• gitim
  plural

1. a legal document, executed by a rabbi or Jewish court of law, dissolving the marriage bond between husband and wife.

2. a divorce granted in accordance with Jewish law.

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get ¹ British  

/ ɡɛt /

verb

1. to come into possession of; receive or earn

2. to bring or fetch

3. to contract or be affected by

   he got a chill at the picnic

4. to capture or seize

   the police finally got him

5. (also intr) to become or cause to become or act as specified

   to get a window open

   get one's hair cut

   get wet

6. (intr; foll by a preposition or adverbial particle) to succeed in going, coming, leaving, etc

   get off the bus

7. (takes an infinitive) to manage or contrive

   how did you get to be captain?

8. to make ready or prepare

   to get a meal

9. to hear, notice, or understand

   I didn't get your meaning

10. informal to learn or master by study

11. to come (to) or arrive (at)

    we got home safely

    to get to London

12. to catch or enter

    to get a train

13. to induce or persuade

    get him to leave at once

14. to reach by calculation

    add 2 and 2 and you will get 4

15. to receive (a broadcast signal)

16. to communicate with (a person or place), as by telephone

17. informal to have an emotional effect (on)

    that music really gets me

18. informal to annoy or irritate

    her high voice gets me

19. informal to bring a person into a difficult position from which he or she cannot escape

20. informal to puzzle; baffle

21. informal to hit

    the blow got him in the back

22. informal to be revenged on, esp by killing

23. slang

    1. (foll by to) to gain access (to a person) with the purpose of bribing him

    2. (often foll by to) to obtain access (to someone) and kill or silence him

24. informal to have the better of

    your extravagant habits will get you in the end

25. informal (intr; foll by present participle) to begin

    get moving

26. informal (used as a command) go! leave now!

27. archaic to beget or conceive

28. See even 1

29. informal to be reprimanded or punished severely

30. slang to allow oneself to respond to new ideas, styles, etc

31. archaic to make pregnant

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noun

1. rare the act of begetting

2. rare something begotten; offspring

3. slang a variant of git

4. informal (in tennis, squash, etc) a successful return of a shot that was difficult to reach

GeT ² British  

abbreviation

1. Greenwich Electronic Time

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get More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing get

• be (get) busted
• become
• come and get it
• dip (get) one's toes into
• early bird catches (gets) the worm
• give
• give as good as one gets
• ground floor, get in on the
• have
• it takes getting used to
• lay (get) one's hands on
• marching orders, get one's
• play hard to get
• squeaky wheel gets the grease
• tell someone where to get off
• when the going gets tough
• you get what you pay for

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Pronunciation

The pronunciation for get has existed since the 16th century. The same change is exhibited in for can and for yet. The pronunciation is not regional and occurs in all parts of the country. It is most common as an unstressed syllable: Let's get going! . In educated speech the pronunciation in stressed syllables is rare and sometimes criticized. When get is an imperative meaning “leave immediately,” the pronunciation is usually facetious: Now get! .

Usage

For nearly 400 years, forms of get have been used with a following past participle to form the passive voice: She got engaged when she was 19. He won't get accepted with those grades. This use of get rather than of forms of to be in the passive is found today chiefly in speech and informal writing. In British English got is the regular past participle of get, and gotten survives only in a few set phrases, such as ill-gotten gains. In American English gotten, although occasionally criticized, is an alternative standard past participle in most senses, especially in the senses “to receive” or “to acquire”: I have gotten (or got ) all that I ever hoped for. Have or has got in the sense “must” has been in use since the early 19th century; often the have or has is contracted: You've got to carry your passport at all times. The use of have (or has ) got in the sense of “to possess” goes back to the 15th century; it is also frequently contracted: She's got a master's degree in biology. These uses are occasionally criticized as redundant on the grounds that have alone expresses the meaning adequately, but they are well established and fully standard in all varieties of speech and writing. In some contexts in American English, substituting gotten for got produces a change in meaning: She's got (possesses) a new job. She's gotten (has acquired) a new job. He's got to (must) attend the wedding. He's gotten to (has been allowed or enabled to) attend. The children have got (are suffering from) the measles. The children have gotten (have caught) the measles. The use of got without have or has to mean “must” ( I got to buy a new suit ) is characteristic of the most relaxed, informal speech and does not occur in edited writing except in representations of speech. Gotta is a pronunciation spelling representing this use.

The use of off after get as in I got this chair off an antique dealer is acceptable in conversation, but should not be used in formal writing

Synonym Usage

Get, obtain, acquire, procure, secure imply gaining possession of something. Get may apply to coming into possession in any manner, and either voluntarily or not. Obtain suggests putting forth effort to gain possession, and acquire stresses the possessing after an (often prolonged) effort. Procure suggests the method of obtaining, as that of search or choice. Secure, considered in bad taste as a would-be-elegant substitute for get, is, however, when used with discrimination, a perfectly proper word. It suggests making possession sure and safe, after obtaining something by competition or the like.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• getable
  adjective
• gettable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• gitim
  plural
• gittin
  plural

Participles

• getting
  present
• got
  past
• gotten
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• get
  simple
• gets
  simple
• have got
  perfect
• have gotten
  perfect
• has got
  perfect
• has gotten
  perfect
• am getting
  progressive
• are getting
  progressive
• is getting
  progressive
• have been getting
  perfect progressive
• has been getting
  perfect progressive

Past

• gat
  simple
• got
  simple
• had got
  perfect
• had gotten
  perfect
• was getting
  progressive
• were getting
  progressive
• had been getting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will get
  simple
• will have got
  perfect
• will have gotten
  perfect
• will be getting
  progressive
• will have been getting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of get

First recorded in 1150–1200; (verb) Middle English geten from Old Norse geta “to obtain, beget”; cognate with Old English -gietan (as in forgi(e)tan forget ( def. ) ), German -gessen (as in vergessen “to forget”); (noun) Middle English: “something gotten, offspring,” derivative of the verb

Explanation

Get is one of those little words with a hundred applications. A common meaning is fetch, as in, go get a dictionary off the shelf. Get means to catch, or grab. If you get a cold, someone passed it on to you. If you get an idea, that means you understand it. Get can also be used to talk about directions. If you want someone to get out of a room, you want them to leave. If you sleep on the sidewalk, the police will make you get up. Get is also short for beget, or make children. How many children will you get?

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

get gittin gets gat got gotten getting

"We've made the decision to skip this race and get ready for the next one. Sad to miss it, hopefully see you next year!"

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026

“Leap of Faith” has a country-style lyric of struggles to get by in a “gritty old town,” but the sound more closely resembles cheerful “heartland rock.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

“You’ve gotta know that my energy and my soul really want to play music. Hopefully, I will get this figured out much sooner than later. If I could, I would be back out there tomorrow.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

Because once you build a set, and you get something that flows, upsetting the apple cart sometimes .

From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2017

Despite the above, don’t get it twisted—this school is very much like any other high school.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

Then he says, ‘We must be keerful, For the cider’s gittin low.’

From Time ● Oct. 15, 2015

When the butchering is over Then the farmer feels so-so; But he’s always sort of worried, Fears the cider’s gittin low.

From Time ● Oct. 15, 2015

Which, as she was born in the Bronx, is pronounced "We gittin they!"

From The Guardian ● Aug. 31, 2014

“Hush, now. Luster gone to git de surrey en take you to de graveyard. We aint gwine risk gittin yo cap,” she said.

From "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner

“Listen to me, Jeth; you’re gittin to be a sizable boy. There’s goin’ to be a lot of things in the years ahead that you’ll have to stand.

From "Across Five Aprils" by Irene Hunt

Every year, California gets hit with those highest high tides roughly around the summer and winter solstices.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

"It's going to get worse before it gets better," she said.

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026

But that does not mean the executor automatically gets 5% on the estate’s worth.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026

The physical shortage of housing gets a lot of blame in the debate about how to tackle America’s affordability problem.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

He ducks under the garage door, but his spiked-up hair gets smushed on the way out.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

The 37-year-old star appeared onstage wearing a traditional Korean hat known as a "gat", featured in Netflix's animated megahit "KPop Demon Hunters".

From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2025

They’re often depicted in traditional black hanbok and tall gat hats, which explains the Saja Boys’ costuming later in the movie.

From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2025

In this Bonnie & Clyde, female ambition is more dangerous than a loaded gat.

From Slate ● Dec. 6, 2013

As Bogart aged, he lost his defiance, leaving Warner Brothers for Columbia and trading his gat for a bow tie.

From New York Times ● Oct. 8, 2010

"I cudn't stop him, ner thee nowder, for that matter, if he nobbut gat a fair ho'd o' the'."

From Wrestling and Wrestlers: Biographical Sketches of Celebrated Athletes of the Northern Ring; to Which is Added Notes on Bull and Badger Baiting by Sidney Gilpin

"The horrible thing about mesothelioma is that you haven't a clue that you've got it until it's too late."

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026

I got a little gym in my house, and I do some exercises and then I do a big mug of tea.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

“I know he’s going to get it done because he got it done everywhere else, and he gets the right guys in the right places,” Knight said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

He got to watch the Primavera show, and I got to talk to him on stage, because he was watching.

From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2017

A fake date might be the closest we ever got to a real one.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Wright said he relayed that people were telling him that Shakur and Knight had gotten into a fight at MGM with South Side Compton Crips.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

He suggested that shoppers have gotten wiser, but not necessarily worse off.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

"Sometimes I wonder, what am I trying to achieve, and what am I trying to prove, and who am I trying to prove it to, and what have I gotten from it?" he says.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

Industrial stocks have gotten expensive, but here are some with the most attractive growth prospects.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

“I went to see your mother this morning. She mentioned that you two have gotten friendly. She seemed pleased about it.”

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

“I am not okay, I’m on a journey to discover okay. I am not better, I’m getting help to be better,” he wrote.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

And I wasn’t entirely thrilled with “Backrooms” getting lost in the maze of its metaphors, either.

From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2026

Now, Senator Sullivan is getting help from a former Republican mayor of Anchorage, who is urging voters to stay focused and back the right guy.

From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026

“We’re not getting directly involved in or taking ownership of the goods…That’s not part of the initial model.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

Zara, Nate, and I are at the foot of the dock, watching the flurry of people struggle to carry their cardboard boats down the beach to the water’s edge, getting ready for the regatta.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Related Words

• bring
• draw
• earn
• gain
• grab
• have
• land
• make
• obtain
• pick up
• pull
• realize
• receive
• score
• take
• win