pick up

pick upphrasal verb

The idea behind most senses of pick up is bringing something from farther away, a lower place, or a stop to one that is closer, held, or moving again: lifting an object, collecting a person, buying something quickly, learning bit by bit, catching an illness, business or weather increasing, answering a call, noticing a hint, continuing something that had stopped, paying for others, or talking to a stranger you do not know.

1. liftlift someone or something from a surface or the ground, usually with your hands

   transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv]

   • Sam picked up the bag and left. V + adv + obj
   • She picked the baby up and rocked him. V + obj + adv
   • I dropped my keys; can you pick them up for me? V + obj + adv (a pronoun object goes before up)
   • Pick up your toys, please.

   Collocations

   verb + noun pick up the phone, pick up a pen, pick up your bag, pick up a child

   Synonyms lift; take; collect

   Antonyms put down

   1. astand up again after falling

      Only as pick yourself up.

      • He picked himself up and went on running.
      • She picked herself up, brushed off the dust, and laughed.

   2. bmake a room tidy by putting things back where they belong

      transitive or intransitive [T/I] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + adverb or preposition [V + adv/prep] American

      • Pick up your room before dinner.
      • I need to pick up a bit before the guests arrive. (with no object)

2. collect someonego to a place and collect a person or a thing, usually in a car

   transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv]

   • I will pick you up at the station at six. V + obj + adv
   • Could you pick up the kids from school today? V + adv + obj
   • Mari stopped to pick up a package on her way home.
   • The bus picks passengers up outside the hotel.

   Collocations

   verb + noun pick someone up from school, pick someone up at the airport, pick up a package, pick up an order

   Antonyms drop off (drop someone off means take them to a place and leave them there)

   1. astop someone and take them to a police station

      The subject is the police.

      • The police picked him up for questioning.
      • She was picked up at the border. (passive)

3. buy or getbuy or get something, often quickly or without much planning

   transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv]

   • Can you pick up some bread on the way home?
   • She picked up a nice coat at the market for very little.
   • I picked up the tickets this morning.

   Collocations

   verb + noun pick up some milk, pick up a bargain, pick up a copy of

4. learnlearn a language, a skill, or a habit little by little and without formal study, by hearing or seeing it

   transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv]

   • Children pick up languages quickly.
   • Yuki picked up a few words of the local language on her trip.
   • Where did you pick up that habit?
   • I picked up the basics of the game in an afternoon.

   Collocations

   verb + noun pick up a language, pick up a habit, pick up a skill, pick up a few words, pick up an accent

5. an illnesscatch an illness from someone or from a place

   transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv]

   • Lee picked up a cold on the plane.
   • You can pick up all sorts of germs in a crowded room.
   • He picked up a stomach bug on vacation.

   Collocations

   verb + noun pick up a cold, pick up a bug, pick up an infection, pick up germs

   Synonyms catch

6. improveincrease in speed, strength, or quality, often after a slower or weaker period

   transitive or intransitive [T/I] verb + adverb or preposition [V + adv/prep] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj]

   • Business usually picks up before the holidays. V + adv/prep
   • The wind picked up in the afternoon.
   • The train slowly picked up speed. V + adv + obj
   • Her mood picked up after lunch.

   Collocations

   noun + verb business picks up, sales pick up, the wind picks up, the pace picks up

   verb + noun pick up speed

7. answer the phoneanswer the phone when it rings

   transitive or intransitive [T/I] verb + adverb or preposition [V + adv/prep] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj]

   • I called twice, but nobody picked up. V + adv/prep
   • Pick up the phone; it might be important. V + adv + obj
   • She picked up on the first ring.

   Synonyms answer

8. noticenotice something that is not easy to notice, such as a mistake or a smell

   transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv]

   • The dog picked up the scent and ran off.
   • The scanner picked up a small mistake in the file.
   • A good editor picks up errors that others miss.

   Collocations

   verb + noun pick up a mistake, pick up a smell, pick up a scent

   Synonyms detect (detect is more formal)

   1. areceive sounds, radio waves, or messages sent through the air, as a radio or a phone does

      transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv]

      • Our radio can pick up stations from far away.
      • The phone can't pick up a signal in the tunnel.

      Collocations

      verb + noun pick up a signal, pick up a station

   2. bnotice something, especially a feeling or a hint, and understand what it means

      Only as pick up on something; it cannot be separated.

      transitive [T] verb + preposition + object [V + prep + obj]

      • He picked up on her nervousness at once. V + prep + obj
      • The teacher picked up on the fact that nobody had done the reading.

9. continuecontinue something, beginning at a certain point instead of from the start

   transitive or intransitive [T/I] verb + adverb or preposition [V + adv/prep] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj]

   • Let's pick up where we left off yesterday. V + adv/prep
   • The second book picks up the story ten years later. V + adv + obj

   Collocations

   phrase pick up where you left off, pick up the story, pick up the thread

10. paypay for something, especially a meal, for other people

    transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv] informal

    • Omar insisted on picking up the bill.
    • Who is going to pick up the check? (check: American for the bill in a restaurant)
    • The company picked up the cost of the trip.

    Collocations

    verb + noun pick up the bill, pick up the check, pick up the tab, pick up the cost

11. a strangerstart talking to a stranger because you want to have sex with them or go out with them

    transitive [T] verb + adverb + object [V + adv + obj] verb + object + adverb [V + obj + adv] informal

    • He tried to pick her up at the bar.
    • She had no interest in being picked up by a stranger. (passive)