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to get in

297 2.7
To be accepted to a college or university after you apply
  • phrasal verb
  • /ɡɛt ɪn/
translation icon : ser admitido (en)
  • She worked hard to improve her grades so that she could get in to the prestigious college.
  • try to get in

I was really, I'm proud that I got in.

Examples

  • I didn't think I was gonna get in.

  • More residents hung around the South Administration, waiting to get in to see their counselors.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Anyway, before we go, which house do you think you would get in, man?

  • You need a special permit to get in.

  • Are we willing to talk about families who get in because of their connections and wealth?

    Academic text (2006)
  • But I can't get in.

  • After submitting my application, I am hoping to get in to my dream university this fall.

  • Many students are anxious about whether they will get in to their chosen schools after the results are announced.

Synonyms

to make it
vsto get in
  • Informal
377 3.2

To pass a test or be chosen in a selection

refers specifically to being admitted to institutions after applying
to get into
vsto get in
289 2.7

Be accepted by a school or university

is broader, applying to acceptance by any institution after applying

Antonyms

180 3.0

Not being accepted by people or a group

How Accepted

to get in
297 2.7
offer
1.0
to waitlist
3 3.7
rejected
2.6

Surface Forms

get in infinitive
getting in present participle
gets in third person singular
got in past
gotten in past participle

Morphology

get + in

The meaning 'to arrive at a station' is directly derivable from combining 'get' (to arrive/come) with 'in' (into an interior/location), i.e. arriving into a place. This verb + particle composition is a common, cross-linguistic pattern and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

Get in paints the picture of a student standing outside a college gate and then being let inside: you get through the gate and are in. That's why 'to get in' means 'to be accepted' to a school.