Gets
/ɡɛts/noun
The third-person singular present form of “get,” meaning to obtain, receive, become, understand, or cause.
Did you know?The ancestor of “get” also carried the meaning “to guess,” suggesting that acquiring knowledge and obtaining something were once linguistically intertwined.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*getaną
“To obtain, reach, or acquire; reconstructed Germanic ancestor of “get.””
Old Norse
Old Norse
geta
“To obtain, manage, be able to, or guess.”
12th Century
Middle English
geten
“To obtain, receive, reach, or become; adopted into English in northern dialects.”
14th Century
Middle English
geth
“Third-person singular form of “geten” or “get,” meaning “he, she, or it obtains.””
Modern English
English
gets
“Third-person singular present form of “get,” used for obtaining, receiving, becoming, understanding, and causing.”