get wise to

1. Also be wise to. See through the deception of; also, become aware of. For example, It took a while, but she finally got wise to Fred's lies, or I'm wise to the fact that her clothes come from a thrift shop. [Colloquial; mid-1800s]

Example Sentences

As people get more used to seeing white vans parked on busy high streets, will people who know they are wanted by police simply get wise to the cameras and avoid them?

From BBC

Hypotheses from behavioral research propose that the rarer color morph always has an advantage, because the host birds gradually get wise to the trick.

From Science Daily

“Rooms are still available along the path of totality but are going fast. The longer people wait, the harder it will be to find accommodations inside the eclipse path. And the higher the rates will be as the hotels and property owners get wise to what’s happening,” Dave Clark, who runs the website NationalEclipse.com, told CNN Travel.

From Seattle Times

But deployed over a city, rats get wise to physical traps.

From Slate

It didn’t take them long to get wise to the return of their favorite food.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• catch 
• come upon 
• design 
• detect 
• determine 
• devise 
• disclose 
• explore 
• hear 
• identify 
• invent 
• learn 
• locate 
• notice 
• observe 
• realize 
• recognize 
• reveal 
• see 
• spot