pick up

take and lift upward

take up by hand

• “He picked up the book and started to read”

give a passenger or a hitchhiker a lift

• “We picked up a hitchhiker on the highway”

gather or collect

• “You can get the results on Monday”
• “She picked up the children at the day care center”
• “They pick up our trash twice a week”

get to know or become aware of, usually accidentally

• “I learned that she has two grown-up children”
• “I see that you have been promoted”

get in addition, as an increase

• “The candidate picked up thousands of votes after his visit to the nursing home”

abstain from certain foods, as for religious or medical reasons

• “Catholics sometimes fast during Lent”

buy casually or spontaneously

• “I picked up some food for a snack”

recieve (perceptual input)

• “pick up a signal”

lift out or reflect from a background

• “The scarf picks up the color of the skirt”
• “His eyes picked up his smile”

meet someone for sexual purposes

• “he always tries to pick up girls in bars”

fill with high spirits; fill with optimism

• “Music can uplift your spirits”

get better

• “Her performance in school picked up”

perceive with the senses quickly, suddenly, or momentarily

• “I caught the aroma of coffee”
• “He caught the allusion in her glance”
• “ears open to catch every sound”
• “The dog picked up the scent”
• “Catch a glimpse”

eat by pecking at, like a bird

gain or regain energy

• “I picked up after a nap”