get at

verb

1. to gain access to

   the dog could not get at the meat on the high shelf

2. to mean or intend

   what are you getting at when you look at me like that?

3. to irritate or annoy persistently; criticize

   she is always getting at him

4. to influence or seek to influence, esp illegally by bribery, intimidation, etc

   someone had got at the witness before the trial

Idioms and Phrases

Touch, reach successfully, as in Mom hid the peanut butter so we couldn't get at it . [Late 1700s]

Try to make understandable; hint at or suggest. For example, I think I see what you're getting at . [Late 1800s]

Discover, learn, ascertain, as in We must get at the facts of the case . [Late 1700s]

Bribe or influence by improper or illegal means, as in He got at the judge, and the charges were dismissed . [ Colloquial ; mid-1800s]

Start on, begin work on, attend to, as in “Get at your canvassing early, and drive it with all your might” (Mark Twain, letter to his publishers, 1884). [ Colloquial ; late 1800s]

Related Words

• ascertain 
• get hold of