pick up

pick someone up 

1. to attempt to become acquainted with someone for romantic or sexual purposes. Who are you any way? Are you trying to pick me up? No, I never picked up anybody in my life!

2. [for the police] to find and bring someone to the police station for questioning or arrest. The cop tried to pick her up, but she heard him coming and got away. Sergeant Jones, go pick up Sally Franklin and bring her in to be questioned about the jewel robbery.

3. to stop one's car, bus, etc., and offer someone a ride. Don't ever pick a stranger up when you're out driving! I picked up a hitchhiker today, and we had a nice chat.

4. to go to a place in a car, bus, etc., and take on a person as a passenger. Please come to my office and pick me up at noon. I have to pick up Billy at school.

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pick something up 

1. Lit. to lift up or raise something from a lower place. Please help me pick this stuff up off the pavement. Pick up every bit of it!

2. Fig. to tidy up or clean up a room or some other place. Let's pick this room up in a hurry. I want you to pick up the entire house.

3. Fig. to find, purchase, or acquire something. Where did you pick that up? I picked up this tool at the hardware store.

4. Fig. to learn something. I pick languages up easily. I picked up a lot of knowledge about music from my brother.

5. Fig. to cause something to go faster, especially music. All right, let's pick up the tempo and get it moving faster. Okay, get moving. Pick it up!

6. Fig. to resume something. Pick it up right where you stopped. I'll have to pick up my work where I left off.

7. Fig. to receive radio signals; to bring something into view. I can just pick it up with a powerful telescope. I can hardly pick up a signal.

8. Fig. to find a trail or route. The dogs finally picked the scent up. You should pick up highway 80 in a few miles.

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pick up 

1. to tidy up. (See also pick up (after someone or something).) When you finish playing, you have to pick up. Please pick up after yourself.

2. to get busy; to go faster. Things usually pick up around here about 8:00. I hope business picks up a little later. It's boring here.

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pick somebody up also pick up somebody

1. to get someone and bring them somewhere I'll pick you up at the airport. I'm just waiting to pick up the kids.

2. to get someone to play for your team They made trades with several teams, and picked up Davis from the Reds.

3. to meet someone you did not know and begin an informal and often sexual relationship with them Is that the girl who picked him up at a bar last week? I was almost picked up by a 16-year-old last summer.

4. to put someone under the control of the police Police picked up 12 suspects in early-morning raids. The police pick them up, but the judges just let them go.

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pick you up

to make you happy This is the kind of music that just picks you up. Seeing her always picked me up.

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pick up

1. to increase in speed or amount The wind really picked up this morning. Economic growth is expected to pick up next year.

2. to improve The team usually plays poorly in the first half, then picks up later in the game.

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pick up (something)

to answer the telephone Her answering machine came on, and I yelled, “Pick up, Marie! Pick up the phone!”

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pick up something

to earn points or a victory McDowell picked up his first win in almost a year last night. Armstrong increased his lead in the race, picking up another 94 points.

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pick up something also pick something up

1. to get something Gwen picked up a cold on her trip. We need some milk, so I'll pick some up on the way home.

2. to pay for something Bob was going to pay for dinner, but I said no, I'll pick it up. He was hoping that his insurance would pick up most of those bills.

3. to learn something I was born up north, but I moved at such a young age that I picked up the southern ways real quick. She lived in Paris and picked the language up easily, soon speaking it like a native.

4. to notice something You'd have to know him extremely well to pick up details like that. We gave him a hint, but he failed to pick it up.

5. to continue something The TV series is over for this year, but the station plans to pick it up again next season. The network picked up Rogers's show in 1970.

6. to receive sounds, pictures, or other information carried by energy waves The microphone picked up much more noise than we expected. I could hear a voice, but my cell phone couldn't pick it up well enough for me to know who it was.

7. to print or broadcast information that has been printed or broadcast somewhere else The story first appeared in a Baltimore weekly, but was soon picked up by most of the nation's newspapers.

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