get a move on

Idioms  

1. Also,. Hurry up; also, start working. For example, Get a move on, it's late, or Let's get cracking, kids, or It's time we got going, or The alarm went off ten minutes ago, so get rolling. The first colloquial expression dates from the late 1800s. The second term, also colloquial, employs the verb to crack in the sense of “travel with speed,” a usage dating from the early 1800s, but the idiom dates only from the first half of the 1900s. The third term dates from the late 1800s and also has other meanings; see get going. Get rolling alludes to setting wheels in motion and dates from the first half of the 1900s. Also see get busy; get on the stick.

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Example Sentences

First Minister John Swinney has urged the UK government to "get a move on" with support for households hit by sharp increases in the cost of heating oil.

From BBC • Mar. 15, 2026

Dutch trade minister Liesje Schreinemacher, describing the act as "very worrisome", said the taskforce had to "get a move on" and produce results as soon as possible.

From Reuters • Nov. 25, 2022

The scoreboard at the Sentry Tournament of Champions delivered a clear message to get a move on it.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 7, 2022

I’m still a fair way short of that threshold, but let’s just say the curtain has gone up on Act 3, and it’s time to get a move on.

From Washington Post • Sep. 28, 2021

“If you’re going to tell them the story, get a move on, Remus,” snarled Black, who was still watching Scabbers’s every desperate move.

From "Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban" by J.K. Rowling

Related Words

• advance
• boost
• expedite
• facilitate
• fly
• further
• hasten
• help
• hurry
• promote
• quicken
• ride
• run
• rush
• zoom