pick up on

P p

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [pik uhp on, awn]
- /pɪk ʌp ɒn, ɔn/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [pik uhp on, awn]
- /pɪk ʌp ɒn, ɔn/

Definitions of pick up on words

verb with object pick up on to choose or select from among a group: to pick a contestant from the audience. 1
verb with object pick up on to seek and find occasion for; provoke: to pick a fight. 1
verb with object pick up on to attempt to find; seek out: to pick flaws in an argument. 1
verb with object pick up on to steal the contents of: Her pocket was picked yesterday. 1
verb with object pick up on to open (a lock) with a device other than the key, as a sharp instrument or wire, especially for the purpose of burglary. 1
verb with object pick up on to pierce, indent, dig into, or break up (something) with a pointed instrument: to pick rock; to pick ore. 1

See all 38 definitions of pick up on

Information block about the term

Origin of pick up on

First appearance:

before 1250

One of the 11% oldest English words

1250-1300; v. Middle English pyken, pikken, pekken, cognate with Dutch pikken, German picken, Old Norse pikka to pick; akin to peck2, pike5; (noun) derivative of the v.

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Pick up on

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of Pick up on

pick up on popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 97% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.

Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

pick up on usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for pick up on

verb pick up on

animadvert — to comment with strong criticism (upon); make censorious remarks (about)
ascertain — If you ascertain the truth about something, you find out what it is, especially by making a deliberate effort to do so.
auscultate — to examine (a patient) by means of auscultation
auscultated — Simple past tense and past participle of auscultate.

All 53 Synonyms of pick up on