The Phrasal Verb 'Get Up To' Explained
- Phrasal Verbs Explained
- Apr 4
- 10 min read
Updated: Apr 7
An explanation of the different meanings of the English phrasal verb 'get up to' from a native speaker, with lots of examples in context
Hello and welcome to my website for English learners all about phrasal verbs where I explain their different meanings to help you understand, learn and use them.
Some of you may remember that a few weeks ago, I published a post all about the super common phrasal verb 'get up' (link here). Originally, I wanted to include the different meanings of its variation 'get up to' in the same post, but whilst I was writing it, I decided that they should have their own page and here it is 😊 In this post, I will explain three different ways to use 'get up to' and provide you with lots of example sentences in context to help you to use it naturally in your English conversations. So, without further ado, let's make a start....
Please like and share the post if you find the article useful (I won't know otherwise)! Also, feel free to leave a comment at the end with your own sentence using 'get up to' 😊
GET UP TO: KEY INFORMATION
Usage | Common |
Number of meanings | 3 |
Past tense forms | Got up to / Gotten up to |
Separable? | Rarely |
MEANINGS (Click to jump to each one)
THE BASICS
As a starting point in my posts, I always like to consider the different meanings of the words that make up the phrasal verb that I am explaining; in this case it is the three extremely common words 'get', 'up' and 'to'. To keep things short, I will just focus on the combination 'up to' rather than the individual words 'up' and 'to', which I am certain you will all be very familiar with already.
The verb 'to get' is our base verb in this construction and is one that most English learners find particularly difficult and frustrating since native speakers seem to use it in an infinite number of ways. While it is true that 'to get' has numerous meanings and is frequently used in informal English as a synonym for other verbs, the primary meaning to focus on for this post is 'to reach or arrive at a point or place'. Another key feature of the verb 'to get' that you should be aware of as we go through the different meanings is its use in describing states or situations that a person finds themselves in.
I got home late last night.
What time did you get here?
Sarah got to work early yesterday to work on her emails.
How do I get to the city centre?
We need to get prepared for the show.
I got lost walking through the city.
Next, we have the combination of the prepositional particles 'up to', which has several different meanings in English, depending on the context. Perhaps the most common of its meanings is 'as far as' when referring distance or 'until' in reference to time. It can also be used to say that something depends on someone, that something is someone's decision and, more relevant for this post, that someone is engaged in an activity, especially when it is something that they should not be doing.
You have up to one hour to solve this problem.
It is up to you to speak to the management.
What do you want to do? It is completely up to you as I can't make that decision.
What are you up to?
The kittens were up to no good in the laundry room.
So, now that we have covered the basics, let's move on to the different meanings of the phrasal verb 'get up to'....
MEANING 1: To physically reach a high point or position
CEFR Language Level | B1 - Intermediate |
Usage | Common |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To climb onto, to climb up to, to reach, to arrive at |
Separable? | No |
The first application of 'get up to' that we will cover in this post is the most literal of its three meanings and is 'to physically reach a high point or position'.
Nouns commonly used with this application....
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This literal application is used in reference to when we physically move ourselves or climb from a low place to a high place, which is usually (but not always) the top of something.
This usage is derived from the meaning 'to arrive at' that we have with the verb 'to get', in combination with the particle 'up' to mean a relatively higher place or away from the ground, giving us the idea of arriving high up.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE WITH 'GO UP TO'?
When using the verb 'to get' to describe a movement to a place, the focus tends to be on the final destination and the point in time when you arrive there, whilst with 'go up' the focus tends to be more on the upward movement. However, we only tend to use 'go up' when the upward movement is easy and without problems. When we face problems or difficulties with the upward movement or if it is not possible, we use 'get up' instead. It is also therefore more common to use 'get up' rather than 'go up' in negative statement and questions.
I managed to get up to the top of the mountain just before sunset.
How did you get up to the roof without a ladder?
The cat somehow got up to the highest branch of the tree.
The hikers were not able to get up to the peak due to the steep terrain.
Despite using a rope, John struggled to get up to the second-floor balcony.
Lucy and Peter climbed for hours to get up to the summit.
I would love to know how that squirrel got up to the attic!
The workers used a crane to get up to the top of the building.
MEANING 2: To reach a certain point
CEFR Language Level | B2 - Upper intermediate |
Usage | Common |
Where is it used? | Everywhere |
Potential synonyms | To reach, to make it to |
Separable? | No |
The second application of 'get up to' is pretty similar to the first one but this time it simply means 'to reach a certain point'.
Nouns commonly used with this application....
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Unlike the first application, this one is not about physical upward movement but is used more for activities that we do over a period of time, which involve an element of progress from a starting point to an end point. We typically use it when we have started an activity but not finished it and we want to tell someone the latest or furthest point that we have reached.
Common examples of this include reading a book, playing a video game and watching a movie or TV series; all of which take time to do and have defined start and end points.
If you are reading a book and you have only read 5 chapters so far, you might say that you "have got up to chapter 5". Alternatively, if you are watching a TV series with a lot of seasons and episodes but you have only watched the first season, you might say that you "have got up to the end of the first season".
Rachel got up to chapter five in the book before she had to stop.
I only got up to episode three of the series before I lost interest.
Jamie got up to the first big boss in the video game but could not get past that point.
I've only got up to the bit where the main character's brother dies, so don't give me any spoilers!!
What bit of the book have you got up to?
IT'S SO HOT TODAY!!
In addition to the things that I have already mentioned, we can also use 'get up to' to describe numerical values and percentages that go up and down and in doing so, reach a certain level, price or quantity. Typically, this can include high temperatures, values of stocks & shares and prices but can also include things that we measure in numbers such as speed, website traffic and heart rates.
We often use this application when a number or value has increased above a specified point, when there is something noteworthy or surprising about the increase or when there is a specified limit that we want the number to reach. Quite often, similar to the previous usage, our focus is on hitting the high point, rather than on the increase itself, for which we would tend to use 'go up' again.
The temperature in London got up to 35°C yesterday.
The company's profits got up to a record high this quarter.
Laura's heart rate got up to 180 bpm during the intense workout. The price of gas got up to $5 per gallon last summer but luckily it dropped again soon after.
The marathon runner’s pace got up to 20 km/h in the final stretch.
The noise level in the stadium got up to 120 decibels.
His bank balance got up to $10,000 after months of saving.
The number of daily visitors to the website got up to 100,000 last week.
His weight got up to 90 kilograms before he started dieting.
The company's stock got up to $150 per share before dropping again.
MEANING 3: To do something
CEFR Language Level | C1 - Advanced |
Usage | Common |
Where is it used? | British English |
Potential synonyms | To do, to be up to |
Separable? | No |
The third and final meaning of 'get up to' is an informal British English usage and means 'to do something, often that is slightly bad or a bit naughty'.
Nouns commonly used with this application....
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Firstly, you should note that this is a really commonly used application in informal, everyday British English, so if you can master this and use it with any British friends or colleagues, it will sound great and very natural👌
To help you understand this application, I should first explain that it comes from the expression 'to be up to something', which means 'to do something, typically that is secretive or mischievous or that you should not be doing'. It is not always used for negative behaviour however, and in informal English, you will regularly hear questions such as "what are you up to?" as an alternative to "what are you doing?".
What are you two up to in there? (this could be when you suspect that the people are doing something that they should not be doing?)
I'm sure Jane is up to something, she is not acting normally and she can't look me in the eye.
What are you up to this weekend?
We use 'get up to' in very much the same way as we use 'be up to' and, in fact, it is just an alternative form of this. Again, we can use it both when we think that someone is misbehaving, being sneaky or doing something unusual and just as a simple and informal alternative to the verb 'to do'.
You should note that it is commonly used in questions about what people did in the recent past, e.g. "what did you get up to at the weekend?".
The kids have been very quiet since lunch; I wonder what they’re getting up to.
My puppy always gets up to some kind of mischief when left alone.
I don’t know how they got up to so much trouble in just one afternoon.
My friends and I used to get up to all sorts of adventures when we were younger.
You won’t believe what Brian got up to while on vacation!
My grandparents love hearing about what I’ve been getting up to at university.
The cat got up to no good while we were out; just look at the mess!
I don’t want to know what they got up to at the party last night!
What did you get up to over the weekend?
I didn't get up to much last week as I felt a bit tired.
An expression that you may hear is 'to get up to no good', which is again the idea of doing something naughty or that you are not supposed to do.
What are those children doing in there? I bet they are up to no good!
My cats often get up to no good during the day when we are at work.
IDIOMS AND EXPRESSIONS WITH 'GET UP TO'
There are several commonly used idioms and expressions that we can use with the phrasal verb 'to get up to'.....
To get up to speed - As I explained earlier in the post, we can use 'to get up to speed' to mean to reach a certain speed describing movement, however there is also a more idiomatic meaning to make you aware of. It can also mean to obtain all of the most recent information about a subject or situation, particularly when you need to do something about it or make a decision. A less common alternative to this is 'to get up to date'.
It took me a few days to get up to speed with the new software, but now I feel confident using it.
Before the meeting, make sure you read the report so you can get up to speed on the latest developments.
To get up to scratch - If we want to improve something so that it reaches an acceptable standard, we can say 'to get (it) up to scratch'. This is often used in reference to skills that we have or need to practice in order to improve.
His work wasn’t acceptable to begin with, but after some training, he managed to get it up to scratch.
I need to practice my French more if I want to get up to scratch before I go to Paris.
ONE LAST POINT....
Before finishing the post, I want to make you aware of another time that you may come across 'get up to' in English
From time to time, you are likely to see sentences such as "Get up to 5% off your next purchase." and "The criminal is likely to get up to 10 years in prison." in English.
In this sense, we have the idea that a person will receive something up to a maximum limit or point. This is not strictly a phrasal verb usage as 'get up to' is not considered one lexical unit here with 'get' and 'up to' being separate, but I wanted to make you aware of it nonetheless.
We have now reached the end of this post and I just want to say thank you for clicking on my post and reading it. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have been able to learn something new about the phrasal verb 'get up to'. If you enjoyed this post, please go ahead and check out some of my other posts.
Now it is YOUR turn. Can you think of a sentence yourself using 'get up to'. Write it in the comments section below if you can, or alternatively any comments, suggestions or feedback that you may have....don't be shy!!!
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THE END
The phrase, 'early this yesterday' in the sentence, "Sarah got to work early this yesterday to work on her emails." doesn't sound natural to me. What if I remove 'this' in front of yeaterday?
Is it OK?