ENGLISH
REFERENCE

get across

phr. v..
B2 Upper Intermediate Oxford General-service

phr. v.. to make someone understand an idea or a message clearly.

phr. v.. to communicate a concept or information effectively so that it is comprehended by the recipient; often implies a barrier or difficulty in the communication process.


SIMPLE

I hope I can get my point across.

CONTEXTUAL

The teacher used simple diagrams to get the complex scientific theory across to the students.

COMPLEX

The politician struggled to get her message across to the voters despite an extensive and expensive advertising campaign.

Particles
across
Separability
optional
Pattern
get + object + across
Usage

often used with 'point', 'message', or 'idea' as the object.

Teaching tip

contrast with 'explain'; 'get across' emphasizes the successful reception of the message by the listener rather than just the act of speaking.

Pitfall

He got across his point.He got his point across.while both are grammatically possible, this phrasal verb is almost always separated when the object is a short noun phrase or pronoun.

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