Get Rid of Get

Get Rid of "Get"

Un-Get, Getless, Degetting, Get Removal, Get Abatement, Get-Purge, Get Elimination, Degetification, Getectomy

By Gerald Grow

Most uses of "get" in the 75 sentences below express a different shade of meaning. Actually, they only imply that shade of meaning and depend on the reader to imagine it. Good writing uses words that are more explict and expressive.

As much as possible, rewrite the sentences to replace forms of "get" with words that express the precise meaning. Get rid of get, gets, got, gotten and getting.

When in doubt, try to explain the likely meaning of the sentence without using "get." Avoid using other words with multiple meanings, such as "have" or "do." If you can't remove "get," list the sentences where using "get" seems to be the best solution.

Complete all the examples as best you can before looking to a dictionary or thesaurus for help. Good luck, and get started.

The bond gets a four percent return.
His drinking got him a bad reputation.
You need to get permission from the dean.
She got the flu from her roommate and gave her lice in return.
I hoped to get lunch somewhere near the hospital.
Please get a pencil from my desk.
The king got two sons by his first wife.
It took a long time to get through security at the airport.
I told him to get his ratty dog out of my house.
Be careful not to get your feet wet.
Can you get breakfast ready for us today?
He got put on academic probation.
She got her nose broken from sticking it into other people's business.
He got only $30 for the watch, but it didn't work anyway.
Patterson got the better of his opponent.
I don't get grammar. I just can't get my mind around it.
This ending of this movie always gets me.
These assignments really get me.
The first two shots missed, but the third shot got him.
Can I finally get you to study grammar?
With that many classes, he's got no time to study.
You've simply got to see this cartoon.
What did you get when you figured the standard deviation?
It took me a while, but I've got all your names by heart now.
My car got 32 miles per gallon on our last trip.
He got out of the car and stood in traffic, cheering jubilantly.
It was nearly dawn when I finally got to sleep.
How far did you get with the assignment?
How did he get so rich selling used watches?
I never got to see the exhibit of Dali paintings.
After dinner, we got to telling stories about our college days.
How will you get clear of your student loans?
How did he get into trouble with your mom?
He got caught with his arm in the cookie jar.
It took a while to get a bead on interest rates, they were changing so quickly.
We had to get after him for coming late so often.
It takes work to get ahead.
Can you get a move on? I'm in a hurry here.
It is hard to get at the distinctions among some of these sentences.
What are you getting at?
Do you think I can get away with 800 words, when the assignment called for 1200?
The article is due tomorrow. I have to get cracking on it.
She won't cross me, because she knows I'll get even.
We're almost late. It's time to get going.
You know, I could really get into grammar.
Young man, if you get home after midnight, you're really going to get it.
How many times do I need to tell you before you finally get it?
He got up early, because he was hoping to get it on with the band in a good jam session, but he was not able to get himself together, so he only got on the nerves of the other musicians by getting their hopes up.
She told him to get over his regrets, if he ever wanted to get anything done in life.
To get to the cabin, they had to get over a place where the road had gotten washed out.
He felt he had to get through all her defenses in order to get to her true nature.
He hoped they would get together, but he could not even get her to notice him.
He went home, where he could get busy on his homework.
Accounting majors get together in the library every Wednesday to work on professional development.
If you get wind of any other examples, please get them to me.
Grammar is tricky. You really have to get with it.
Here's what I'm trying to get across to you: If we can get around this problem, do you think we could get along?
I need to get back to work so my boss won't get back at me for being late again, which might cause me to get fired.
I get by with a little help from the AP Stylebook.
I'll get down from the roof, get off the ladder, get in the car, and go get some roofing nails. Got it?
We got off easy this time.
We finally got off around 10 a.m.
Some people manage to get off on cough syrup.
By charming the officer, she managed to get off with a warning instead of a speeding ticket.
The prisoner got off early for good behavior.
While the accused was being hustled from the courtroom, he got off a few lewd insults at the judge.
The bus stopped in front of the cathedral, and he got off.
I just can't get through to you.
We tried to get through the chaparral, but the thorny bushes were too dense.
My call finally got through.
You've been sleeping all morning. It's time to get up.
You fell. I'll help you get up.
How can we get up this mountain?
This event is too fancy for jeans. You'll need to get yourself up more than that.
He could not get up the nerve to ask her name, so he decided to think of her as Matilda.

Bonus. Now write several sentences that contain as many different meanings of "get" as you can put into them. As a special challenge, try to tell an entire story in which most of the verbs are forms of "get."

Commentary. "Get" belongs to the language of oral communication, where its many possible meanings are narrowed down by context, speaker, gesture, inflection and timing. As a result, we rarely have difficulty understand what someone is saying. We get it.

If you use the same words in writing, however, problems arise. In writing, there is no speaker to make gestures, vary the tone of voice, inflect the rhythm of the sentence, or put that little tilt on a word to signal that it has a special meaning here. In writing, the words alone, and the context they are in, have to carry the entire burden of meaning.

That is why writers work to use words that convey the precise meaning -- words that communicate the full implication of a statement. Otherwise, readers just won't get it. Or worse, they will interpret those ambiguous little words in a way you did not mean, and that could get you into trouble.

Some items for readers with R-rated imaginations. One teacher found six of the original "get" items unsuitable for high school students. You can find the suspect items at this link. If you are an adult, you can examine the items, and you can read my explanations for why they are perfectly innocent, all in the interest of good grammar.

Credit: This exercise owes much to the entry on "get" in Webster's New World Collegiate Dictionary.

Back to Newsroom 101