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Getting to Know the Verb 'Get' |
From VOA Learning English, this is Everyday Grammar.
So, Alice, what did you do last night?
Well, I was at home, getting ready to go to the movies.
I was getting my shoes on when I got a feeling that
something strange was going to happen.
I've gotten those feelings, too.
Then, I left the house, and got a cab, and got to the
movies as fast as I could.
Did you get there on time?
Yes! But as soon as I got into the theater, I got a
phone call from someone whose voice I didn’t recognize.
That’s when things started to get weird…
Did you notice anything unusual in this story? The verb
get is used 10 times -- and with several different
meanings.
Get is one of the most commonly used, most tricky, and
sometimes most hated words for English learners. When
learning this verb, it is best to keep a sense of humor.
That is because the verb has more than 50 uses, such as
when it appears as part of at least 12 phrasal verbs or
other expressions.
Today on Everyday Grammar, we explore this simple
three-letter word with many meanings. But don’t worry.
By the time you come to the end of the program, we hope
you will begin to enjoy this captivating and changeable
verb.
We will consider a few of the most common meanings of
get and offer some ideas on how to use the verb.
Let’s start with a very common meaning of get, which is
to receive, obtain, or buy. The structure is:
get + direct object
Listening or reading for clues and then recognizing the
meaning from those clues is the best way of explaining
this meaning.
For example, take the following sentence:
I got an email from my friend Penelope.
In this sentence, does ‘got’ mean received, obtained, or
bought?
Here, the word got means received. We know that the
person did not buy the email. We also know that they did
not obtain it, since obtain means to acquire by effort.
Let’s try another sentence:
I just got a new sofa!
In this example, does got mean received, obtained, or
bought? It probably means bought, since the speaker does
not provide any evidence that it was received.
But, in this statement, whether the speaker bought the
sofa or obtained it in some other way is not very
important. The most important thing to know here is that
the speaker did not receive the sofa – they obtained it
in some way.
Now, let’s turn to a different meaning of get. This one
means to bring or fetch. The structure is:
get + direct object
Listen to this example:
I’m going outside to get the mail.
Sometimes, however, the structure can be:
get + indirect object + direct object
Listen to the example:
Could you get me my phone? It’s in the bedroom upstairs.
In this sentence, the direct object is my phone and the
indirect object is me. This is a structure you can use
to ask someone to bring something to you. You would
probably not use it unless the thing were fairly close.
For example, if you left your mobile phone at a friend’s
house, and you will see the friend tomorrow, you would
not say:
Could you get me my phone tomorrow?
Instead, you would say:
Could you bring me my phone tomorrow?
Now, you try it. Ask someone to bring something nearby
to you.
Our next meaning of get is to arrive somewhere. There
are two structures here. The first is:
get + location adverb
The second is:
get + to + location
Listen to a few examples:
What time will you get here?
I got to Tokyo at 6 a.m.
I got to the concert late.
In these examples, the clue to the meaning of get is the
name of a place right after the verb, such as “Tokyo,”
“the movies,” “here” or “there.”
Our last meaning of get on today’s program is to become.
The structure is:
get + adjective
Listen to a few examples:
The food is getting cold.
I get nervous when I have to speak in public.
In this use, the verb get simply replaces the verb
become. You will recognize this easily when you hear or
see an adjective immediately after get.
Here are three suggestions to help you better understand
and use the meanings of get:
Tip #1: Guess the meaning from
clues
Guessing can be your best friend when trying to
understand and use the meanings of get. Use context
clues to help you know how get is used. Context means
words that are used with or next to a specific word or
expression that helps explain its meaning.
Look for a direct object or a location adverb or an
adjective before or after the verb get. These will help
you to know its intended meaning.
Tip #2: Practice, practice,
practice
Read and listen to as much as you can in English. The
more you do this, the more easily you will be able to
use clues as a tool to quickly understand meaning.
Americans, the British, and other native English
speakers can recognize these clues very quickly. You can
learn to do this, too! Try to immerse yourself in
English by listening to Learning English podcasts,
watching movies and YouTube videos, and listening to
music.
Tip #3: Use other verbs
If you are not sure how to use some of the meanings of
get, you can instead use verbs with similar meanings.
Sometimes the other verbs sound natural, and other times
they sound formal. For example, you can say, “I just
bought a new sofa!” and it sounds perfectly natural. By
comparison, saying, “I arrived home at 10 pm” sounds
very official. Yet, both are correct and can be used.
Orin Hargraves is a lexicographer. He writes and studies
dictionaries. Hargraves recently told Everyday Grammar
that, “Many of the jobs that we currently give to
get…can also be expressed by other verbs.” Hargraves’
advice is good advice.
The Everyday Grammar team hopes you enjoyed learning a
few of the many meanings of the verb get. So, get going
and enjoy this wonderful verb. We've got to go now. But
keep listening in the coming weeks for more words with
many meanings.
I’m Phil Dierking.
I'm Jill Robbins.
And I'm Alice Bryant.
Alice Bryant wrote this story for Everyday Grammar.
George Grow was the editor. |
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