pick up on something

pick up on something
pick up on something
to become alert to something; to take notice of something; to learn or catch on to something. •

She's real sharp. She picks up on everything.

The cop picked up on the car with the expired license plates.


Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • pick up on (something) — 1. to continue talking about something previously said. Just to pick up on what Haley asked, I think the president clearly did get the message. 2. to notice something. The evidence was there I just didn t pick up on it …   New idioms dictionary

  • pick holes in something — phrase to try and make an idea or piece of work seem bad by finding all the things that are wrong or missing It was almost impossible to pick holes in his argument. Thesaurus: to criticize, accuse or blamesynonym words used to describe… …   Useful english dictionary

  • pick holes in something — pick holes in (something) to find mistakes in something someone has done or said, to show that it is not good or not correct. The lawyer did her best to pick holes in the witness s statement …   New idioms dictionary

  • pick and choose (something) — phrase to have the chance to choose the things that you prefer, rather than simply accepting what someone gives you We cannot pick and choose which laws to obey. Thesaurus: to choose someone or somethingsynonym to choose a personhyponym… …   Useful english dictionary

  • pick someone or something to pieces/shreds — pick (someone or something) to pieces/shreds : to study and criticize all of the parts of (someone or something) The media picked his personal life to pieces. Her ideas were picked to shreds by her coworkers. • • • Main Entry: ↑pick …   Useful english dictionary

  • pick someone or something to pieces — pick (someone or something) to pieces see ↑pick, 1 • • • Main Entry: ↑piece …   Useful english dictionary

  • pick up on something — in. to become alert to something; to take notice of something; to learn or catch on to something. □ She’s real sharp. She picks up on everything. □ The cop picked up on the word “persuader.” …   Dictionary of American slang and colloquial expressions

  • pick holes in something — to try and make an idea or piece of work seem bad by finding all the things that are wrong or missing It was almost impossible to pick holes in his argument …   English dictionary

  • pick up on something — …   Useful english dictionary

  • pick out something — pick out (someone/something) 1. to choose someone or something instead of others. The writer picked out certain things about the event that he thought were important. His boss picked him out for an assignment in Japan. 2. to find someone or… …   New idioms dictionary

  • pick out someone — pick out (someone/something) 1. to choose someone or something instead of others. The writer picked out certain things about the event that he thought were important. His boss picked him out for an assignment in Japan. 2. to find someone or… …   New idioms dictionary

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