• IPA: /ɡɛt/, /ɡɪt/, [ɡɛʔ]

get (gets, present participle getting; past and past participle got)

1. (ditransitive) To obtain; to acquire.

   I'm going to get a computer tomorrow from the discount store.

   Lance is going to get Mary a ring.

2. (transitive) To receive.

   I got a computer from my parents for my birthday.

   You need to get permission to leave early.

   He got a severe reprimand for that.

3. (transitive, in a perfect construction, with present-tense meaning) To have. See usage notes.

   I've got a concert ticket for you.

4. (copulative) To become, or cause oneself to become.

   I'm getting hungry; how about you?

   I'm going out to get drunk.

   • His chariot wheels get hot by driving fast.

5. (transitive) To cause to become; to bring about.

   That song gets me so depressed every time I hear it.

   I'll get this finished by lunchtime.

   I can't get these boots off (or on).

6. (transitive) To fetch, bring, take.

   Can you get my bag from the living-room, please?

   I need to get this to the office.

   • Bible, Book of Genesis xxxi. 13

     Get thee out from this land.

   • He […] got himself […] to the strong town of Mega.

7. (transitive) To cause to do.

   Somehow she got him to agree to it.

   I can't get it to work.

   • c. 1601–1602, William Shakespeare, “Twelfe Night, or VVhat You VVill”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: Printed by Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358 ↗, [Act III, scene iii]:

     Get him to say his prayers.

8. (intransitive, with various prepositions, such as into, over, or behind; for specific idiomatic senses see individual entries get into, get over, etc.) To adopt, assume, arrive at, or progress towards (a certain position, location, state).

   The actors are getting into position.

   When are we going to get to London?

   I'm getting into a muddle.

   We got behind the wall.

9. (transitive) To cover (a certain distance) while travelling.

   to get a mile

10. (transitive) To cause to come or go or move.
11. (transitive) To cause to be in a certain status or position.
    • , Retro me, Sathana, line 1

      Get thee behind me.

12. (intransitive) To begin (doing something).

    We ought to get moving or we'll be late.

    After lunch we got chatting.

13. (transitive) To take or catch (a scheduled transportation service).

    I normally get the 7:45 train.

    I'll get the 9 a.m. [flight] to Boston.

14. (transitive) To respond to (a telephone call, a doorbell, etc).

    Can you get that call, please? I'm busy.

15. (intransitive, followed by infinitive) To be able, permitted (to do something); to have the opportunity (to do something).

    I'm so jealous that you got to see them perform live!

    The finders get to keep 80 percent of the treasure.

16. (transitive, informal) To understand. (compare get it)

    Yeah, I get it, it's just not funny.

    I don't get what you mean by "fun". This place sucks!

    I mentioned that I was feeling sad, so she mailed me a box of chocolates. She gets me.

17. (transitive, informal) To be told; be the recipient of (a question, comparison, opinion, etc.).

    "You look just like Helen Mirren." / "I get that a lot."

    • quote en

18. (informal) To be. Used to form the passive of verbs.

    He got bitten by a dog.

19. (transitive) To become ill with or catch (a disease).

    I went on holiday and got malaria.

20. (transitive, informal) To catch out, trick successfully.

    He keeps calling pretending to be my boss—it gets me every time.

21. (transitive, informal) To perplex, stump.

    That question's really got me.

22. (transitive) To find as an answer.

    What did you get for question four?

23. (transitive, informal) To bring to reckoning; to catch (as a criminal); to effect retribution.

    The cops finally got me.

    I'm gonna get him for that.

24. (transitive) To hear completely; catch.

    Sorry, I didn't get that. Could you repeat it?

25. (transitive) To getter#Verb|getter.

    I put the getter into the container to get the gases.

26. (now, rare) To beget (of a father).
    • 1603, William Shakespeare, Othello, Act I, Scene iii:

      I had rather to adopt a child than get it.

    • 1610-11, William Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act I, Scene ii:

      Thou poisonous slave, got by the devil himself / Upon thy wicked dam, come forth!

    • 2009, Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall, Fourth Estate 2010, page 310:

      Walter had said, dear God, Thomas, it was St fucking Felicity if I'm not mistaken, and her face was to the wall for sure the night I got you.

27. (archaic) To learn; to commit to memory; to memorize; sometimes with out.

    to get a lesson;  to get out one's Greek lesson

    • it being harder with him to get one sermon by heart, than to pen twenty

28. (imperative, informal) Used with a personal pronoun to indicate that someone is being pretentious or grandiose.

    Get her with her new hairdo.

    • 1966, Dorothy Fields, If My Friends Could See Me Now (song)

      Brother, get her! Draped on a bedspread made from three kinds of fur!

    • 2007, Tom Dyckhoff, Let's move to ... ↗, The Guardian:

      Money's pouring in somewhere, because Churchgate's got lovely new stone setts, and a cultural quarter (ooh, get her) is promised.

29. (informal, mostly, imperative) Go away; get lost.
    • 1991, Theodore Dreiser, T. D. Nostwich, Newspaper Days, University of Pennsylvania Press ISBN 9780812230956, page 663

      Get, now — get! — before I call an officer and lay a charge against ye.&

    • , Fredric Brown, Mack Reynolds, Me and Flapjack and the Martians

      I had a sneaking suspicion that it wasn't no flashlight and I wasn't too curious, just then, to find out what would happen if he did more than wave it at me, so I got. I went back about twenty feet or so and watched.

    • 2010, Sarah Webb, The Loving Kind, Pan Macmillan ISBN 9780230749672

      'Go on, get. You look a state. We can't let Leo see you like that.'

    • 2012, Paul Zindel, Ladies at the Alamo, Graymalkin Media ISBN 9781935169741

      Now go on, get! Get! Get! (she chases Joanne out the door with the hammer.)

30. (euphemism) To kill.

    They’re coming to get you, Barbara.

31. (intransitive, obsolete) To make acquisitions; to gain; to profit.
    • 1591, William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: Printed by Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358 ↗, [Act IV, scene iii]:

      We mourn, France smiles; we lose, they daily get.

32. (transitive) To measure.

    Did you get her temperature?

• (obtain) acquire, come by, have
• (receive) receive, be given
• (fetch) bring, fetch, retrieve
• (become) become
• (cause to become) cause to be, cause to become, make
• (cause to do) make
• (arrive) arrive at, reach
• (go, come) come, go, travel
• (adopt or assume (a position or state)): go, move
• (begin) begin, commence, start
• (catch (a means of public transport)): catch, take
• (respond to (telephone, doorbell)): answer
• (be able to; have the opportunity to do) be able to
• (informal: understand) dig, follow, make sense of, understand
• (informal: be (used to form the passive)): be
• (informal: catch (a disease)): catch, come down with
• (informal: trick) con, deceive, dupe, hoodwink, trick
• (informal: perplex) confuse, perplex, stump
• (find as an answer) obtain
• (bring to reckoning; to catch (as a criminal)): catch, nab, nobble
• (physically assault) assault, beat, beat up
• (informal: hear) catch, hear
• (getter) getter

• (obtain) lose

• guess

• French: obtenir
• German: besorgen, holen, erwischen, kriegen (colloquial), schnappen, anschaffen
• Italian: ottenere
• Portuguese: conseguir, pegar, arrumar, obter (somewhat formal), adquirir (somewhat formal)
• Russian: достава́ть
• Spanish: conseguir, obtener

• French: recevoir
• German: bekommen, (colloquial) kriegen
• Italian: ricevere
• Portuguese: receber, ganhar (especially when receiving as a prize or gift)
• Russian: получа́ть
• Spanish: recibir

• French: devenir, (get + is often translated by a reflexive verb in French; get drunk = s'enivrer)
• German: werden, in some cases: gehen (sometimes translated by a reflexive verb: get drunk = sich betrinken)
• Italian: divenire, diventare, (get + is often translated by a reflexive verb in Italian; get drunk = ubriacarsi)
• Portuguese: tornar, ficar, (get + is often translated by a reflexive verb in Portuguese; get drunk = embriagar-se)
• Russian: станови́ться
• Spanish: volverse, convertirse en, get + (adjective) is often translated by a reflexive verb in Spanish, e.g.: get drunk = emborracharse

• Italian: far diventare
• Portuguese: deixar

• French: ramener, chercher
• German: mitbringen, holen
• Italian: trasportare
• Portuguese: pegar, buscar
• Russian: приноси́ть
• Spanish: traer

• Portuguese: fazer
• Spanish: hacer que

• French: atteindre, arriver
• German: ankommen, erreichen
• Portuguese: chegar em/a
• Russian: добира́ться
• Spanish: llegar

• Italian: mettere
• Portuguese: ficar

• Portuguese: começar a

• Portuguese: pegar
• Spanish: tomar, agarrar

• Portuguese: atender

• Portuguese: poder

• French: capter, piger
• German: kapieren, haben (regional)
• Portuguese: sacar, captar
• Russian: понима́ть
• Spanish: captar, pillar, guipar

• French: être
• German: werden
• Italian: essere
• Portuguese: ser
• Spanish: ser

• Portuguese: pegar

• Portuguese: pegar
• Russian: подловить
• Spanish: atrapar

• Portuguese: deixar pasmo
• Russian: поразить

• Portuguese: para <person> dar <answer> (example: I got twenty point five → para mim deu vinte vírgula cinco )

• Portuguese: pegar

• Portuguese: pegar

• Portuguese: ouvir direito

get (plural gets)

1. (dated) Offspring.
   • 1810, Thomas Hornby Morland, The genealogy of the English race horse (page 71)

     At the time when I am making these observations, one of his colts is the first favourite for the Derby; and it will be recollected, that a filly of his get won the Oaks in 1808.

   • 1999, George RR Martin, A Clash of Kings, Bantam 2011, page 755:

     ‘You were a high lord's get. Don't tell me Lord Eddard Stark of Winterfell never killed a man.’

2. Lineage.
3. (sports, tennis) A difficult return or block of a shot.
4. (informal) Something gained; an acquisition.

get (plural gets)

1. (British, regional) A git.

get (plural gittim)

1. (Judaism) A Jewish writ of divorce.