get
- 01 A1 Beginner
v.to receive, buy, or find something.
v.to come into possession of; to receive, acquire, or purchase.
Simple“I need to get some milk from the shop on my way home.”
In context“The researchers managed to get the necessary funding after presenting their preliminary findings to the board.”
- 02 A1 Beginner
v.to change into a new state or feeling.
v.to change state or condition; functions as a copular verb often followed by an adjective.
Simple“It gets very dark here in the winter after four o'clock.”
In context“As the negotiations dragged on into the night, the participants began to get restless and impatient.”
- 03 A1 Beginner
- 04 B1 Intermediate
v.to understand an idea or a joke.
v.to comprehend or grasp a meaning, often used in informal speech.
Simple“I don't get the joke — can you explain it to me?”
In context“The lecture was quite technical, and I suspect half the students didn't get the core concept.”
SynonymsAntonyms - 05 A2 Elementary
- 06 A2 Elementary
- 07 B1 Intermediate
v.used with another word to show something happened to someone, often by accident.
v.used as an auxiliary verb with a past participle to form the passive voice, typically for unexpected or accidental events.
Simple“He got stopped by the police for driving too fast.”
In context“Several windows got broken during the storm, but fortunately, no one was injured by the flying glass.”
UsageAlways followed by a past participle (e.g., 'get married', 'get hurt').
- 08 A2 Elementary
- 09 C2 Proficiency
n.a very difficult save or return of a ball in a game.
n.a successful return of a ball that appeared impossible to reach.
Simple“The crowd cheered after his incredible get at the edge of the court.”
In context“Her defensive play was characterized by a series of remarkable gets that frustrated her opponent throughout the final set.”
- 10 C2 Proficiency
n.a rude word for a person you do not like.
n.a regional variant of 'git', used as a mild to moderate insult for a contemptible person.
Simple“He's a miserable old get who never says hello.”
In context“The local youths were shouting at the man, calling him a 'clumsy get' after he tripped over the curb.”
Usage get updates · get penis · get better
From Middle English geten, from Old Norse geta, from Proto-Germanic getaną. Cognate with Old English ġietan (whence also English yet), Old Saxon getan (“to get, to gain sth.”), Old High German pigezzan (“to uphold”), Gothic 𐌱𐌹𐌲𐌹𐍄𐌰𐌽 (bigitan, “to find, discover”)), from Proto-Indo-European gʰed- (“to seize”).
Variant of git.
From Hebrew גֵּט (gēṭ).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
For Mandarin speakers Mandarin lacks a final /t/ stop, so speakers often add a neutral vowel sound /ə/ at the end, pronouncing it as /ɡetə/.
得到 (dédào) means “To receive, obtain, or gain something tangible or abstract.” — While '得到 (dédào)' covers obtaining objects or grades, it does not translate the 'moving to a place' or 'becoming' senses of 'get', leading to over-reliance on 'arrive' or 'become'.
Mandarin indicates a change of state using the particle 了 (le) at the end of a sentence rather than an auxiliary verb. Learners often omit 'get' in 'get + adjective' constructions, saying 'I angry' instead of 'I got angry'.
The Mandarin verb 拿 (ná) means 'to take' or 'to get'. Because 拿 (ná) is used for physical grasping, learners often use 'take' in contexts like 'get a cold' or 'get a job', resulting in 'take a cold'.
For Japanese speakers Japanese phonology prohibits word-final consonants other than the nasal /n/, leading to the addition of an epenthetic vowel /o/ to form /ɡetto/. This causes learners to produce an extra syllable when pronouncing the final /t/.
In Japanese, state-change verbs like 'naru' (なる) are often used with nouns or adjectives without a distinct 'get' equivalent for every context, which leads to the omission of the required direct object or adjective complement in English 'get' constructions.
The Japanese expression 'renraku o toru' (連絡を取る) literally translates to 'take contact', which often produces the erroneous 'take contact' instead of the natural collocation 'get in touch'.