English Reference

Phrasal verb

get through

Definition

phrasal verb. to finish a difficult task or period of time; also, to successfully contact someone by phone.

phrasal verb. to endure or complete a challenging experience; alternatively, to establish a telephonic connection with a recipient.

Examples

“I need to get through this pile of work before five.”

“It was a very difficult year, but she managed to get through it with the help of her family.”

“Despite the poor signal in the remote valley, he finally managed to get through to the emergency services after several attempts.”

Examples

simple

“I need to get through this pile of work before five.”

contextual

“It was a very difficult year, but she managed to get through it with the help of her family.”

complex

“Despite the poor signal in the remote valley, he finally managed to get through to the emergency services after several attempts.”

Usage

often used with 'to' when referring to communication or 'with' when finishing a task.

Teaching tip

this verb is polysemous; use the 'finishing a task' sense to practice time management vocabulary and the 'phone' sense for functional language lessons.

Pitfall

I got through of the exam.

I got through the exam.

the verb is followed directly by the object without the preposition 'of'.

Phrasal verb

Particles

through

Separability

inseparable

Pattern

get + through + object

Synonyms

Antonyms

failgive upget stuck

Grammar

This entry

Level
B1 · Intermediate
Updated

Scan code

englishreference.com/q/get-through

English Reference