Steve: Hi Jill.
Jill: Hello Steve.
Steve: You know, the last time we did this it was sunny and warm and we thought we were still in summer.
Jill: We're in for a rude awakening. Steve: You know, I don't know if it's raining cats and dogs but it's raining. Jill: It's raining pretty hard today, yeah. Steve: We, last time we talked about various words that you had selected like more, mostly and almost. I think today we will stay with easy words, common words but which can give people, words that sometimes create problems for people. The first word I'd like to get your input on is the often used and maybe overused word get. Jill: So, um, first of all, get, to get is a verb.
Steve: Right.
Jill: Um, and I think people use it all the time but it's a very ugly verb. You know, oh, I got this email yesterday. Oh, I got a new shirt, you know, you can, people use it all the time especially when speaking but I think that usually there are nicer verbs that you could use.
Steve: Ok.
Jill: I don't think it's, I don't, it's not incorrect, it's correct. Um, and I think when you are speaking, you know, people use it all the time. I think generally Steve: It is true though that for us the word get or got doesn't sound nice. Jill: No.
Steve: There's something about it but I'm sure you use, I use it a lot. Jill: Oh I do.
Steve: It's a very, very useful word. Jill: Yeah, yes.
Steve: But obviously there are other words that can be more precise in meaning.
Jill: That's right. Steve: You know, I got tired. You know, it's used all the time. Jill: Yes.
Steve: I got angry.
Jill: That's right. Steve: I got tired. I got an email.
Jill: I received an email you could say instead.
Steve: I received an email. Yeah.
Jill: So, it's not wrong but if you can think of a better verb to use in it's place then it's not a bad idea to do that. Steve: And, it's one of these words that combines with other words to have a different meaning like get off. Get off the bus.
Jill: That's right. A phrase.
Steve: Pardon?
Jill: Many phrases will contain the word get.
Steve: That's right. And, but, get off and get on is very common.
Jill: Very common.
Steve: Ok, and I think that very often you have no other choice.
Jill: No and in that situation if you're talking about getting on a bus, getting off of a bus that's what you're going to say. Steve: And you can also get on the phone.
Jill: That's right. Steve: And get off the phone.
Jill: That's right. Steve: Get off the phone.
I'm busy, I need the phone. Jill: That's right. Steve: Get off the phone.
Jill: Yeah.
Steve: I mean there are some other expressions like where does and so and so get off thinking that he can do this or that.
Jill: Right.
Steve: But those are very specialized, almost slang expressions Jill: That's right. Steve: that I don't think people need to worry themselves about too much. Get in. Get in, obviously physically to get in the door but also to get in with someone like you want to get in with a certain group.
Jill: You want to get in with a certain crowd, the popular people, you want to be friends with them so you want to get in to their group.
Steve: Right.
Or you want to get out. You want to get out and see the world.
Jill: Yeah.
Steve: Or you want to get out of the house because it's a nice day. You don't want to spend the whole, ah the whole day inside the house. But then we also have you know, what are you getting out of this course? To get something out of something.
Jill: Right.
Steve: What are the benefits that you feel you are getting again?
Jill: What are you learning from this course?
Steve: Yeah. So, an and also you get out of a habit.
Jill: Yeah that's right. Steve: Right?
Jill: Yes.
Steve: I've gotten out of the habit of chewing gum. Or, someone who used to smoke has gotten out of the habit of smoking, Jill: That's right. Steve: managed to quit smoking. Got out of the habit. So you can get lots of benefit from studying with the Linguist for example. What do you get from the Linguist? What do you get out of the Linguist? I learn English.
Jill: Right.
Steve: Then you can also get over something, right?
Jill: Yes.
Ah, you know lots of times actually people will say, oh get over it. So, if you're, if you're angry about something and you sort of are dwelling on it and won't let it go somebody might say to you, oh get over it Steve: Right. Jill: which means just forget about it.
Steve: Right.
Or you can get over an illness.
Jill: That's right. Steve: You know, you're recovering from a flu, you're getting over your flu. Jill: That's right. Steve: And, ah, yeah.
Jill: To get through something.
Steve: Get through something, yeah to work hard to, work, Jill: To, or, or to get, yeah, like you say to get to accomplish something, to work hard, to get through something or to, um overcome something, Steve: Right. Jill: to get through a rough period in your life.
Steve: Right.
So it's a very, very you know, ah, you can get through to someone too by phone and there was I couldn't get a hold of the person and finally I got through to her. Jill: Right.
Steve: Or I got through to the manager.
Jill: Yes.
Steve: I tried to call the manager and she wouldn't see me and I was told to speak to some clerk but I wanted to complain to the manager so finally I got through to the manager. Jill: That's right. Steve: So, oh another one too is get together.
Jill: That's commonly used. Steve: That's extremely common. What do you want to do this weekend? Do you want to get together? Should we get together and play tennis?
Jill: Or, should we have a get together so as a noun.
Steve: Right.
Jill: That's a little more complicated but Steve: Well it's there and actually what do we do first thing in the morning? We get up.
Jill: Well yeah, exactly.
Steve: We get up.
Jill: We wake up, we get up. That's right. Get out of bed.
Steve: So, yeah, and also and this could apply for example to sports that in order to, you want to get your self up, you want to get yourself motivated, you want to get yourself in you know the frame of mind that you need to play a game or to study English for that matter. So, yeah, or another one is to get up to something which is not so commonly used. What are you up to, you know, what have you gotten up to?
Jill: What have you been up to lately is probably more common.
Steve : What have you been up to right, or someone who is behind the times who is dressing you know in a way that's out of fashion, get with it. Jill: Yeah, that's right. Steve: Get with it.
Jill: Get with it.
Steve: So, I don't know, we've kind of covered the word get there. It is a word you know, that is unavoidable.
Jill: It's everywhere. Steve: It's everywhere, it kind of gets to you after a while. So it's just an all purpose word and because it's an all purpose word, especially when we write if we can choose a word that is a little more accurate, that is a little more specific you know, ah probably it's a better, it's better to choose another word. But, sometimes you don't have the choice and just in order to get on with what you want to say you have to use get. Jill: Right.
Steve: Right.
Jill: And it's not wrong. End.
