v. tr. 1. a. To come into possession or use of; receive: got a cat for her birthday.
b. To meet with or incur: got nothing but trouble for her efforts.
2. a. To go after and obtain: got a book at the library; got breakfast in town.
b. To go after and bring: Get me a pillow.
c. To purchase; buy: get groceries.
3. a. To acquire as a result of action or effort: He got his information from the internet. You can't get water out of a stone.
b. To earn: got high marks in math.
c. To accomplish or attain as a result of military action.
4. To obtain by concession or request: couldn't get the time off; got permission to go.
5. a. To arrive at; reach: When did you get home?
b. To reach and board; catch: She got her plane two minutes before takeoff.
6. To succeed in communicating with, as by telephone: can't get me at the office until nine.
7. To become affected with (an illness, for example) by infection or exposure; catch: get the flu; got the mumps.
8. a. To be subjected to; undergo: got a severe concussion.
b. To receive as retribution or punishment: got six years in prison for tax fraud.
c. To sustain a specified injury to: got my arm broken.
9. a. To perceive or become aware of by one of the senses: get a whiff of perfume; got a look at the schedule.
b. To gain or have understanding of: Do you get this question?
c. To learn (a poem, for example) by heart; memorize.
d. To find or reach by calculating: get a total; can't get the answer.
10. To procreate; beget: “Is my life given me for nothing but to get children and work to bring them up?” (D.H. Lawrence).
11. a. To cause to become or be in a specified state or condition: got the children tired and cross; got the shirt clean.
b. To make ready; prepare: get lunch for the family.
c. To cause to come or go: got the car through traffic.
d. To cause to move or leave: Get me out of here!
12. To cause to undertake or perform; prevail on: got the guide to give us the complete tour.
13. a. To take, especially by force; seize: The detective got the suspect as he left the restaurant.
b. Informal To overcome or destroy: The ice storm got the rose bushes.
c. To evoke an emotional response or reaction in: Romantic music really gets me.
d. To annoy or irritate: What got me was his utter lack of initiative.
e. To present a difficult problem to; puzzle: “It's the suspect's indifference that gets me,” the detective said.
f. To take revenge on, especially to kill in revenge for a wrong.
g. Informal To hit or strike: She got him on the chin. The bullet got him in the arm.
14. Baseball To put out or strike out: got the batter with a cut fastball.
15. To begin or start. Used with the present participle: I have to get working on this or I'll miss my deadline.
16. a. To have current possession of. Used in the present perfect form with the meaning of the present: We've got plenty of cash.
b. Nonstandard To have current possession of. Used in the past tense form with the meaning of the present: They got a nice house in town.
c. To have as an obligation. Used in the present perfect form with the meaning of the present: I have got to leave early. You've got to do the dishes.
d. Nonstandard To have as an obligation. Used in the past tense with the meaning of the present: They got to clean up this mess.