to act on
145
3.2
- phrasal verb
- /ækt ɑn/
:
actuar según
- After receiving the feedback, she decided to act on the suggestions and improve her performance.
- act on information
- act on instinct
- act on impulse
But that doesn't mean it's time to act on it, OK.
- But that doesn't mean it's time to act on it, OK.
- It's easier now than ever to act on impulse.
- But that doesn't kind of excuse us for acting on their request.
- No tendency to act on it exists to any degree.
- And the truth is most of us never act on a lot of our dreams.
- Listen and if you can, as early as possible, act on it and get out.
- And until they say they're not and start acting on it, everything will be murky.
- It's just at what point do you act on those things?
- They can decide whether to act on something they've heard or not.
- It's either because he's just not that interested or he cannot act on that interest.
- They both lose to the one who acts on it.
- South, keep your head on straight, make calculated decisions, don't act on impulse.
- He found himself unable to act on what it was that he thought would be a better idea.
- It's the gift that you must must listen to and act on.
- Do you get mad or again, do you look for ways and act on ways to get better?
- It's your intuition that picks them up and then act on them.
- It's just the only time I acted on it.
Examples
-
Will the Prime Minister simply accept that his government was just too slow to act on care homes?
-
You'll never get anywhere in this business if you can't act on your own initiative.
Fiction book (1996) -
And the truth is most of us never act on a lot of our dreams.
-
Listen and if you can, as early as possible, act on it and get out.
-
It's just at what point do you act on those things?
-
We must act on what we know.
-
Then you got to recognize it, and then you have to act on it.
-
First, we must do a better job if identifying and acting on early warning signs.
-
In a classroom meeting, students are never powerless, and they can act on their own behalf.
Academic text (2011) -
They can decide whether to act on something they've heard or not.
Synonyms
233
3.6
To carry out a plan or task
161
2.8
To do something to solve a problem or make a change
95
3.8
Take more action to check or finish something after first contact
16
3.5
Make someone or something change
1
4.7
To carry out a plan or decision
Antonyms
How Responsive
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to do something as a result of receiving information or advice' is directly compositional from 'act' (to do something) plus the preposition 'on' indicating basis/target (i.e., acting on something). This verb + preposition pattern is common and cross-linguistically transparent, so an average B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Act on comes from the simple image of using information as the base for your action: you act (do something) 'on' a piece of advice or a fact. So, it means 'to do something because of information, advice, or a request'.