Get

Podcast 1 · Introduction

Get

A documentary-style narration: origin, meaning, and feel.

Part of speech

verb

Pronunciation

get  /ɡɛt/

Definition

To obtain, receive, or acquire; to reach or arrive at; to become; to cause something to happen; to understand; to fetch or retrieve — one of the most versatile verbs in the English language with over twenty distinct meanings.

Plain meaning

Get is one of English's busiest verbs — it means to obtain (get a job), to become (get tired), to receive (get a letter), to understand (I get it), to fetch (get the keys), and much more.

Register

Neutral across almost all registers. Informal and colloquial in many constructions. One of the most frequent words in spoken English. Prescriptivists occasionally object to certain uses but these objections have not dented its ubiquity.