pick up
noun1
Rare Rare form of pickup.
- Derived terms
- pick up artist, pick up joint, pick up line, pick up on, pick up one's crumbs, pick up speed, pick up stitches, pick up the pieces, pick up truck, pick up what someone is putting down
pick up
verb24 senses
- 1To lift; to grasp and raise.
- 2To collect or purchase an object, especially in passing.
- 3To acquire (something) accidentally; to catch or…
- 4To clean up; to return to an organized state.
- 5To collect a passenger.
- 6To collect and detain (a suspect).
- 7To obtain and publish a story, news item, etc.
- 8To improve, increase, or speed up.
- 9To restart or resume.
- 10To reach and continue along (a road).
- 11To learn, to grasp; to begin to understand; to realize.
- 12To receive (a radio signal or the like).
- 13To notice, detect or discern; to pick up on.
- 14To point out the behaviour, habits, or actions of (a…
- 15To meet and seduce somebody for romantic purposes…
- 16To answer a telephone.
- 17To receive calls; to function correctly.
- 18To pay for.
- 19To reduce the despondency of.
- 20To take control (physically) of something.
- 21To mark, to defend against an opposition player by…
- 22To record; to notch up.
- 23To behave in a manner that results in a foul.
- 24To promote somebody who was previously passed over.
1
To lift; to grasp and raise.
- When you pick up the bag, make sure to support the bottom.
- Evidently some, or all, of the boars immolated themselves, for the train crew are reported to have picked up three dead boars and continued to Sézanne, the next stop, where they gave them to the local hospital cooks.1957 December 23, “Wild Boars Charge French Train”, in Railway Magazine, page 840:
1 more example
- She came in now, but to the closet; from it she took a simple skirt and blouse. Picking up her underclothing she departed, obviously to dress somewhere else.1964, Philip K. Dick, “NINE”, in Clans of the Alphane Moon, United States: Ace Books, →OCLC; republished London: HarperCollinsPublishers, 1996, →ISBN, page 112:
2
To collect or purchase an object, especially in passing.
- Can you pick up a pint of milk on your way home?
- "I don't want to spoil any comparison you are going to make," said Jim, "but I was at Winchester and New College." ¶ "That will do," said Mackenzie. "I was dragged up at the workhouse school till I was twelve. Then I ran away and sold papers in the streets, and anything else that I could pick up a few coppers by—except steal.[…]"1909 September 9, Archibald Marshall [pseudonym; Arthur Hammond Marshall], chapter II, in The Squire’s Daughter, London: Methuen & Co. […], →OCLC:
1 more example
- For the brass, you don't need to go out and get any specialized hardware. Instead, go pick up a brass nipple at any hardware store for under $20 and cut it down instead.2026 August 23, Collin Knoff, “Mid-Century Modern Table”, in Popular Woodworking, volume 290, number 4, page 50:
3
To acquire (something) accidentally; to catch or contract (a disease).
- I picked up a cold on my trip last week.
- Cars often pick up bits of road tar and asphalt, dried bugs, tree sap, or other debris that’s hard to remove with regular car wash soap.2020 April 16, Thom Dunn, Rik Paul, “How to Wash and Detail a Car the Right Way”, in The New York Times—Wirecutter:
1 more example
- We are constantly being exposed to fungi, whether by picking up spores on our skin or eating food on which fungi are hitchhiking. Most of them won’t take up residence in our bodies.2022 September 29, Carl Zimmer, “A New Approach to Spotting Tumors: Look for Their Microbes”, in The New York Times:
4
To clean up; to return to an organized state.
- You made a mess, aren't you going to pick up after yourself?
- The floor was strewn with bright snips of origami paper, a crumpled drawing, and one dirty sock, which Amy now shoved under the bed with her foot. ¶ "You're lucky," said Marla. "My mother makes me pick up my room every single day."1967, Beverly Cleary, Mitch and Amy, HarperCollins, published 2009, →ISBN, page 28:
5
To collect a passenger.
- I'll pick you up outside the library.
- After picking up a few passengers (most likely heading into Exeter for shopping) and setting a few off (for a day at the beach), we get the 'right away' and continue along the sea wall with its iconic sandstone cliffs on the left.2023 August 23, Pip Dunn, “The last bastion of the HST 'Castles'”, in RAIL, number 990, page 49:
6
To collect and detain (a suspect).
- The cops have picked up the man they were looking for.
7
Media To obtain and publish a story, news item, etc.
- The story does not seem to have been widely picked up.
- News of this notice from the university was picked up by local media and had the effect of raising the ire of some citizens who saw this as an attack on ‘Chinese heritage’[.]2019, Li Huang, James Lambert, “Another Arrow for the Quiver: A New Methodology for Multilingual Researchers”, in Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, →DOI, page 3:
8
To improve, increase, or speed up.
- Prices seem to be picking up again.
- I was in bed sick this morning, but I'm picking up now.
9
To restart or resume.
- Let's pick up where we left off yesterday.
- The plot picks up where the last film left off. The High Table, the organisation that controls crime around the world, has a multi-million-dollar contract out on Wick, who killed a High Table member.2023 March 14, Caryn James, “John Wick: Chapter 4: 'Soars above most action films'”, in BBC:
1 more example
- Picking up eight years after The Dark Knight left off, the film finds Gotham enjoying a tenuous peace based on Harvey Dent’s moral ideals rather than the ugly truth of his demise.2012 July 18, Scott Tobias, AV Club, The Dark Knight Rises:
10
To reach and continue along (a road).
- Walter decided the best route home was to pick up the A5.
- Miller brought his car from the underground garage and threaded a way through London's traffic to pick up the A5.1957, Sydney J. Bounds, The Robot Brains, London: Digit Books, page 45:
11
To learn, to grasp; to begin to understand; to realize.
- It looks complicated, but you'll soon pick it up.
12
To receive (a radio signal or the like).
- With the new antenna, I can pick up stations all the way from Omaha.
13
To notice, detect or discern; to pick up on.
- Did you pick up his nervousness?
14
To point out the behaviour, habits, or actions of (a person) in a critical manner; used with on.
- She's always picking me up on my grammar.
15
With on To meet and seduce somebody for romantic purposes, especially in a social situation.
- He was in the fabric store not to buy fabric but to pick up women.
- I'll tell you what. You lay off my clients, I'll give you a few pointers picking up women, okay?1980, Paul Schrader, American Gigolo, spoken by Julian Kaye (Richard Gere):
1 more example
- Xavier—first seen as an adult in First Class trying to pick up a woman in a bar—is impotent, at least metaphorically, and will eventually see all of his luxuriant hair fall out.2016 May 23, Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, “Apocalypse pits the strengths of the X-Men series against the weaknesses”, in The Onion AV Club:
16
To answer a telephone.
- I'm calling him, but he just isn't picking up!
17
Of a phone To receive calls; to function correctly.
- I've tried his home number a couple times, but it isn't picking up.
18
To pay for.
- The company will pick up lunch with customers for sales calls.
19
To reduce the despondency of.
- […]they pick me up when I'm feeling blue1974, Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Sweet Home Alabama”:
20
To take control (physically) of something.
- Bolton were then just inches from taking the lead, but the dangerous-looking Taylor drilled just wide after picking up a loose ball following Jose Bosingwa's poor attempted clearance.2010 December 29, Chris Whyatt, “Chelsea 1-0 Bolton”, in BBC:
21
Ball games, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Soccer, Sports To mark, to defend against an opposition player by following them closely.
- And soon after, no-one picked up Shotton who was free to power a 12-yard header over from another Pennant corner, before Pennant sent a free kick straight at Cardiff keeper Tom Heaton.2011 January 18, David Dulin, “Cardiff 0-2 Stoke”, in BBC:
22
To record; to notch up.
- And the home side survived without any late scares to pick up the first win of their Group F campaign.2011 September 28, Tom Rostance, “Arsenal 2-1 Olympiakos”, in BBC Sport:
23
Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports To behave in a manner that results in a foul.
24
Government, Military, Politics, War US To promote somebody who was previously passed over.
- […] there are now 98 officers of that rank who have been passed over one or more times, most of whom have little prospect of being picked up by future selection boards but will await only the completion of 21 years' service before going on the retired list.1937, United States. Congress. Senate, Hearings, volume 2, page 141:
- The list is about the same as when each class was commissioned, except for a small percentage who were passed over once or twice and then picked up.1938, United States. Congress. House. Committee on Naval Affairs, Hearings on H.R. 9997 to Regulate the Distribution, Promotion, and Retirement of Officers of the Line of the Navy and for Other Purposes, page 3239:
- Derived terms
30 terms
picker-upper, pick it up, pick-me-up, pick oneself up off the floor, pickupable, pick-up game, pick-up goods, pick-up joint, pick up line, pick up on, pick up one's crumbs, pick up one's marbles and go home, pickup, pick-up, pick up speed, pick up steam, pick-up sticks, pick up stitches, pick up stompies, pick up the ball and run with it, pick up the mantle, pick up the pace, pick up the phone, pick up the pieces, pick up the slack, pick up the tab, pick up the threads, pick up the threads of, pick up what someone is laying down, pick up what someone is putting down