[get one's fingers burned] See: BURN ONE'S FINGERS.
[get one's foot in the door] See: FOOT IN THE DOOR.
[get one's goat] <v. phr.>, <informal> To make a person disgusted or angry. * /The boy's laziness all summer got his father's goat./ * /The slow service at the cafe got Mr. Robinson's goat./
[get one's hands on] See: LAY ONE'S HANDS ON.
[get one's number] or [have one's number] <v. phr.>, <informal> To find out or know what kind of person somebody is. * /The boys soon had the new student's number./ * /The girls got their new roommate's number the first week of school./
[get one's rear in gear] <v. phr.>, <slang> To hurry up, to get going. * /I'm gonna have to get my rear in gear./
[get one's second wind] See: SECOND WIND.
[get one's teeth into] or [sink one's teeth into] <v. phr.>, <informal> To have something real or solid to think about; go to work on seriously; struggle with. * /After dinner, John got his teeth into the algebra lesson./ * /Frank chose a subject for his report that he could sink his teeth into./
[get one's tongue] See: CAT GET ONE'S TONGUE.
[get on in years] See: ALONG IN YEARS.
[get on one's good side] <v. phr.> To gain the favor of someone; flatter or please another. * /A clever lobbyist knows how to get on the good side of both the House of Representatives and the Senate./
[get on one's nerves] <v. phr.> To make you nervous. * /John's noisy eating habits get on your nerves./ * /Children get on their parents' nerves by asking so many questions./
[get on the ball] See: ON THE BALL.
[get on the bandwagon] See: JUMP ON THE BANDWAGON.
[get on the good side of] See: ON THE GOOD SIDE OF.
[get on the stick] <v. phr.>, <slang>, <informal> To get moving; to stop being idle and to start working vigorously. * /All right, man, let's get on the stick!/ Compare: ON THE BALL, GET OFF ONE'S TAIL.
[get on to one] <v. phr.> To figure someone out; understand what someone else is up to. * /The FBI is on to Jim's secret trading with the enemy./
[get one wrong] <v. phr.> To misinterpret; misunderstand another. * /Don't get me wrong; I didn 't mean to criticize you./
[get] or [have one's say] See: DAY IN COURT.
[get out] <v. phr.> 1. Leave or depart. * /"Get out of here!" the teacher shouted angrily to the misbehaving student./ * /"Driver, I want to get out by the opera."/ 2. To publish; produce. * /Our press is getting out two new books on ecology./ 3. To escape; leak out. * /We must not let the news about this secret invention get out./
[get out in the open] See: OUT IN THE OPEN.
[get out of] <v. phr.> 1. To be excused from; avoid. * /He got out of jury duty because of his illness./ 2. To gain from; extract from. * /Tom complained that he didn't get anything out of the course on grammar./
[get out of the way] See: OUT OF THE WAY.
[get out of hand] See: OUT OF HAND, OUT OF CONTROL.
[get over] <v.> 1. To finish. * /Tom worked fast to get his lesson over./ 2. To pass over. * /It was hard to get over the muddy road./ 3. To get well from; recover from. * /The man returned to work after he got over his illness./ 4. To accept or forget (a sorrow or suprise.) * /It is hard to get over the death of a member of your family./ * /We could not get over the speed of Mary's recovery from pneumonia./
[get rattled] <v. phr.> To become confused, overexcited, or nervous. * /The thief got so rattled when he saw the police following him that he drove his car into a ditch./
[get rid of] See: RID OF.
[get set] <v. phr.> To get ready to start. * /The runners got set./ * /The seniors are getting set for the commencement./
[get short shrift] See: SHORT SHRIFT.
[get something out of one's system] <v. phr.> 1. To eliminate some food item or drug from one's body. * /John will feel much better once he gets the addictive sleeping pills out of his system./ 2. To free oneself of yearning for something in order to liberate oneself from an unwanted preoccupation. * /Ted bought a new cabin cruiser that he'd been wanting for a long time, and he says he is glad that he's finally got it out of his system./
[get something over with] See: OVER WITH(1).
get something straight <v. phr.> To clearly comprehend an issue. * /"Let me get this straight," Burt said. "You want $85,000 for this miserable shack?"/
[get stoned] <v. phr.>, <slang> To become very drunk or high on some drug. * /Poor Fred was so stoned that Tom had to carry him up the stairs./ Compare: THREE SHEETS TO THE WIND.
[get straight] See: GO STRAIGHT, GO LEGIT.
[get stuck] <v. phr.> 1. To be victimized; be cheated. * /The Smiths sure got stuck when they bought that secondhand car; it broke down just two days after they got it./ 2. To become entrapped or embroiled in a physical, emotional, or social obstacle so as to be unable to free oneself. * /Last winter our car got stuck in the snow and we had to walk home./ * /Poor Jeff is stuck in a terrible job./ * /Tom and Jane are stuck in a bad marriage./
[get (all) the breaks] <v. phr.> To be fortunate; have luck. * /That fellow gets all the breaks! He's been working here only six months, and he's already been promoted to vice president!/
[get the air] See: GET THE BOUNCE(1).
[get the ax] <v. phr.>, <slang> 1. To be fired from a job. * /Poor Joe got the ax at the office yesterday./ 2. To be dismissed from school for improper conduct, such as cheating. * /Joe got caught cheating on his final exam and he got the ax./ 3. To have a quarrel with one's sweetheart or steady ending in a termination of the relationship. * /Joe got the ax from Betsie - they won't see each other again./
[get the ball rolling] or [set the ball rolling] or [start the ball rolling] <informal> To start an activity or action; make a beginning; begin. * /George started the ball rolling at the party by telling a new joke./ Compare: KEEP THE BALL ROLLING.
[get the better of] or [get the best of] <v. phr.> 1. To win over, beat; defeat. * /Our team got the best of the visitors in the last quarter./ * /George got the better of Robert in a game of checkers./ * /When the opposing player fouled John, John let his anger get the better of his good sense and hit the boy back./ * /Dave wanted to study till midnight, but sleepiness got the best of him./ Compare: RUN AWAY WITH(1). 2. or [have the best of] or [have the better of] To win or be ahead in (something); gain most from (something.) * /Bill traded an old bicycle tire for a horn; he got the best of that deal./ * /Our team had the best of it today, but they may lose the game tomorrow./ * /The champion had all the better of it in the last part of the fight./ Contrast: GET THE WORST OF.
[get the boot] or [the gate] or [the sack] See: GET THE AXE.
[get the bounce] or [get the gate] <v. phr.>, <slang> 1. or [get the air] To lose one's sweetheart; not be kept for a friend or lover. * /Joe is sad because he just got the gate from his girl./ * /Shirley was afraid she might get the air from her boyfriend if she went out with other boys while he was away./ 2. or [get the sack] also [get the hook] To be fired; lose a job. * /Uncle Willie can't keep a job; he got the sack today for sleeping on the job./ * /You're likely to get the bounce if you are absent from work too much./ Contrast: GIVE THE BOUNCE.
[get the brush-off] <v. phr.>, <slang> 1. To be paid no attention; not be listened to or thought important. * /My idea for a party got the brush-off from the other children./ 2. To be treated in an unkind or unfriendly way; be ignored. * /Frank and Jane had an argument, so the next time he telephoned her, he got the brush-off./ Compare: COLD SHOULDER, HIGH-HAT. Contrast: BRUSH OFF.
[get the cart before the horse] See: CART BEFORE THE HORSE.
[get the eye] <v. phr.>, <informal> 1. To be looked at, especially with interest and liking. * /The pretty girl got the eye as she walked past the boys on the street corner./ 2. To be looked at or stared at, especially in a cold, unfriendly way. * /When Mary asked if she could take home the fur coat and pay later, she got the eye from the clerk./ Contrast: GIVE THE EYE.
[get the feel of] <v. phr.> To become used to or learn about, especially by feeling or handling; get used to the experience or feeling of; get skill in. * /John had never driven a big car, and it took a while for him to get the feel of it./ * /You'll get the feel of the job after you've been there a few weeks./
[get the go-ahead] or [the green light] <v. phr.> To receive the permission or signal to start or to proceed. * /We had to wait until we got the go-ahead on our research project./
[get the goods on] or [have the goods on] <v. phr.>, <slang> To find out true and, often, bad information about; discover what is wrong with; be able to prove the guilt of. * /Tell the truth, Johnny. We know who your girl is because we've got the goods on you./ * /The police had the goods on the burglar before he came to trial./ Compare: HAVE SOMETHING ON.
[get the hook] See: GET THE BOUNCE(2).
[get the inside track] See: INSIDE TRACK.
[get the jitters] <v. phr.> To become very nervous or excited. * /I always get the jitters when I sit in an airplane that's about to take off./
[get the jump on] or [have the jump on] <v. phr.>, <slang> To get ahead of; start before (others); have an advantage over. * /Don't let the other boys get the jump on you at the beginning of the race./ * /Our team got the jump on their rivals in the first minutes of play, and held the lead to win./
[get the last laugh] See: HAVE THE LAST LAUGH.
[get the lead out of one's pants] <v. phr.>, <slang> To get busy; work faster. * /The captain told the sailors to get the lead out of their pants./ * /The coach told the players to get the lead out of their pants./
[get the lowdown on] <v. phr.> To receive the full inside information on a person or thing. * /We need to get the lowdown on Peter before we can decide whether or not to hire him./
[get the message] or [get the word] <v. phr.>, <slang> To understand clearly what is meant. * /The principal talked to the students about being on time, and most of them got the message./ * /Mary hinted to her boyfriend that she wanted to break up, but he didn't gel the message./ Compare: THE PICTURE.
[get the picture] See: THE PICTURE.
[get the runaround] See: RUN AROUND.
[get the sack] <v. phr.>, <slang> 1. To be fired or dismissed from work. * /John got the sack at the factory last week./ 2. To be told by one's lover that the relationship is over. * /Joanna gave Sam the sack./ See: GET THE AX and GET THE BOUNCE(2).
[get the show on the road]<v. phr.>, <informal> To start a program; get work started. * /It was several years before the rocket scientists got the show on the road./ Compare: GET THE BALL ROLLING.
[get the third degree] See: THIRD DEGREE.
[get the upper hand on] See: UPPER HAND.
[get the word] See: GET THE MESSAGE.
[get the works] See: THE WORKS.
[get the worst of] also [have the worst of] <v. phr.> To lose; be defeated or beaten in; suffer most. * /Joe got the worst of the argument with Molly./ - Often used in the phrase "the worst of it". * /If you start a fight with Jim, you may get the worst of it./ * /Bill had the worst of it in his race with Al./ * /Jack traded his knife for a few marbles; he got the worst of it in that trade./ * /The driver of the car got the worst of it in the accident./ Contrast: GET THE BETTER OF(2).
[get through] <v. phr.> 1. To finish. * /Barry got through his homework by late evening./ 2. To pass a course or an examination. * /I got through every one of my courses except mathematics./
[get through one's head] <v. phr.> 1. To understand or believe. * /Jack couldn't get it through his head that his father wouldn't let him go to camp if his grades didn't improve./ * /At last Mary got it through her head that she had failed to pass the test./ 2. To make someone understand or believe. * /I'll get it through his head if it takes all night./
[get through to] <v.> To be understood by; make (someone) understand. * /The little boy could not get through to his housemother./ * /Deaf people sometimes find it hard to get through to strangers./ * /When the rich boy's father lost his money, it took a long time for the idea to get through to him that he'd have to work and support himself./
[get to] <v. phr.>, <informal> 1. To begin by chance; begin to. Used with a verbal noun or an infinitive. * /George meant to save his dollar, but he got to thinking how good an ice cream cone would taste, and he spent it./ * /On a rainy day, Sally got to looking around in the attic and found some old pictures of Father./ * /I got to know Mary at the party./ * /I was just getting to know John when he moved away./ Compare: TAKE TO(2). 2. To have a chance to; be able to. * /The Taylors wanted to go to the beach Saturday, but it rained and they didn't get to./ * /Did you get to see the king?/ Compare: GET AT(3). 3. See: HAVE TO.
[get to first base] or [reach first base] <v. phr.> To make a good start; really begin; succeed, * /Joe had a long paper to write for history class, but when the teacher asked for it, Joe hadn't got to first base yet./ * /Suppose Sam falls in love with Betty. Can he even get to first base with her?/ * /George wants to go to college and become a teacher, but I'll be surprised if he even reaches first base./ * /If you don't dress neatly, you won't get to first base when you look for a job./ Compare: FIRST BASE.
[get together] <v.> To come to an agreement; agree. * /Mother says I should finish my arithmetic lesson, and Father says I should mow the lawn. Why don't you two get together?/
[get-together] <n.> A party; a gathering. * /I hate to break up this nice get-together but we must leave./ * /We manage to have a get-together with our old friends once or twice a year./
[get to the bottom of] <v. phr.> To find out the real cause of. * /The superintendent talked with several students to get to the bottom of the trouble./ * /The doctor made several tests to get to the bottom of the man's headaches./ Compare: GET TO THE HEART OF.
[get to the heart of] <v. phr.> To find the most important facts about or the central meaning of; understand the most important thing about. * /You can often get to the heart of people's unhappiness by letting them talk./ * /"If you can find a topic sentence, often it will help you get to the heart of the paragraph," said the teacher./
[get to the point] See: COME TO THE POINT.
[get two strikes against one] See: TWO STRIKES AGAINST.
[get underway] <v. phr.> To set out on a journey; start going. * /We are delighted that our new Ph.D. program finally got underway./
[get under one's skin] <v. phr.> To bother; upset. * /The students get under Mary's skin by talking about her freckles./ * /Children who talk too much in class get under the teacher's skin./
