{"id":10136,"date":"2022-11-04T18:33:05","date_gmt":"2022-11-04T18:33:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=10136"},"modified":"2022-11-04T18:33:05","modified_gmt":"2022-11-04T18:33:05","slug":"get-to-know-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/get-to-know-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Get to Know \u2013 Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"

The phrase 'get to know' <\/strong>is a common saying in the English language, usually one that implies growing knowledge of something or acquaintance between people. The phrase is a common statement, though can also have other meanings. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this saying.<\/p>\n

Meaning<\/h2>\n

The phrase 'get to know' <\/strong>is a common expression in the English language.<\/p>\n

If someone 'gets to know' <\/strong>a topic, then the growing study or knowledge of the topic is implied by the sentence <\/u>\u00a0If someone 'gets to know' <\/strong>a person, then the growing closeness between these people is implied by the sentence.<\/u><\/p>\n

The phrase 'get to know' <\/strong>is usually a serious phrase, although it can also have other humorous or sarcastic implications when it is said.<\/p>\n

Someone can be 'getting to know' <\/strong>another person or topic, or 'get to know'<\/strong> a person or topic.<\/p>\n

Sometimes the phrase 'getting to know someone' <\/strong>is a veiled reference to sex, though it is made very clear by the context of the sentence when it is said.<\/p>\n

The phrase can also see use as 'not get to know' <\/strong>in the negative form, which has the opposite meaning of the regular phrase.<\/p>\n

Example Usage<\/h2>\n

\u201cI told my mother to try speed dating if she couldn't think of anything to do with the rest of the weekend. It was about time that she got out to get to know someone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you don't go to at least one tournament with real people, you can never really get to know the game the way it's meant to be played.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGet to know the guy. You won't know if you're sexually compatible with the man until you've had him press you up against the washer and drier in the basement at three in the morning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you don't see someone when they're angry, the truth is that you're never going to get to know who they really are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Origin<\/h2>\n

According to most online language resources, the phrase 'get to know' is likely to have entered the English language around the 1600s \u2013 but other than its very early use, little else can be established about the origin of the saying.<\/p>\n

The phrase is likely to have originated as a figurative saying, where 'know' implies knowledge of something (or knowledge about someone).<\/p>\n

The phrase was in very common use as a saying by the 1800s, and by the 1900s it was included in the majority of English dictionaries as a common phrase even though its etymology is difficult to establish.<\/p>\n

The phrase 'get to know' is listed on Urban Dictionary from 2017, while other similar phrases are listed from 2004.<\/p>\n

Phrases Similar to Get to Know<\/h2>\n
    \n
  • Have knowledge of<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Phrases Opposite to Get to Know<\/h2>\n
      \n
    • N\/a<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      What is the Correct Saying?<\/h2>\n
        \n
      • Get to know<\/li>\n
      • Getting to know<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Ways People May Say Get to Know Incorrectly<\/h2>\n

        There are several ways in which someone can use the phrase 'get to know' or 'getting to know' in the wrong way.<\/p>\n

        The phrase can be used with sarcastic or humorous implications by the speaker, but implied to mean something serious by the recipient.<\/p>\n

        The reverse can also be true, when the saying is meant as serious, but taken as sarcastic.<\/p>\n

        The phrase is never used as 'get to knew' instead of 'know' as it would give a meaningless phrase.<\/p>\n

        Acceptable Ways to Phrase Get to Know<\/h2>\n

        There are several ways in which someone can use the phrase 'get to know' in the right way.<\/p>\n

        Someone can use the term as 'get to know' or 'getting to know', and sometimes the form 'gets to know' can also appear depending on the tense that the speaker means to imply.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        The phrase 'get to know' is a common saying in the English language, usually one that implies growing knowledge of something or acquaintance between people. The phrase is a common statement, though can also have other meanings. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this saying. Meaning The phrase 'get to know' is a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10136"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10136"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10136\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10138,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10136\/revisions\/10138"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}