- pick up
- phrasal verb
Word forms "pick up":
present tense I/you/we/they pick up he/she/it picks up present participle picking up past tense picked up past participle picked up1) [transitive] to lift someone or something up from a surfaceHe picked the phone up and dialled.
She rushed to pick up the baby as soon as it started to cry.
a) [transitive] to lift things up and put them in the place where they are kept in order to make a place tidyI've already asked them to pick their toys up.
I am constantly picking up the things the children leave lying around.
b) [intransitive/transitive] American to make a place clean and tidyc) [transitive] to lift something up and take it awayPick up a leaflet from your doctor's.
2) [transitive] to go and meet someone or something that you have arranged to take somewhere in a vehicleWill you pick me up after the party?
I'll pick up my luggage in the morning.
a) to take someone who is waiting by the road into your vehicle and take them somewhereWe picked up a hitchhiker on the way.
b) informal to arrest someone and take them away in a carHe was picked up in the early hours of Thursday morning.
3) [transitive] to learn a new skill or start a habit without intending toShe picked up a few German phrases while staying in Berlin.
4) [transitive] informal to get an illnessMost tourists are worried that they'll pick up a nasty stomach bug.
5) [transitive] informal to buy somethinga market where you can pick up some amazing bargains
6) [transitive] to notice a smell or sound, or to notice that someone or something is presentThe dogs must have picked up his scent.
7) [intransitive/transitive] to start something again, from the point where you stoppedpick up where you left off:We'll pick up this conversation when I come back.
He seems to think that we can get back together and just pick up where we left off.
8) [intransitive] to improveThey won't let him out of hospital until his health has picked up quite a lot.
a) if something such as the wind picks up, it becomes strongerb) pick up speed if something picks up speed, it starts to move faster9) [transitive] informal to receive an electronic signal on a radio or similar piece of equipmentI don't think this thing can pick up foreign stations.
10) [transitive] informal to start talking to someone because you want to have sex with themShe went home with some man she picked up in a bar.
11) [transitive] informal to earn moneythe huge salaries that footballers pick up these days
12) [transitive] informal to win something such as a prizeThe film is tipped to pick up at least three Oscars.
13) pick up the bill/tabinformal to pay for somethingHer father picks up the tab for her expensive lifestyle.
14) pick up the pieces to try to return to a normal life after a difficult experienceHe walked out on his family, leaving his wife to pick up the pieces.
15) pick up the threads (of something) to return to a situation that existed before something went wrongAfter the death of a partner, it can be difficult to pick up the threads of your life.
English dictionary. 2014.
