to climb on
- phrasal verb
- /klaɪm ɑn/
- I heard the cot squeak as she climbed on and stretched out.
- climb on top
This little fucker was climbing on top of all the other crabs, right?
- This little fucker was climbing on top of all the other crabs, right?
- And beginners can climb on the same wall as really good climbers.
- The dogs went up there with us, climbed on up, just climbed right on up.
- They jump up 'cause they're waiting for Christine to climb on so they can climb on top of her and then get into their play.
- They have to like climb on the back of another man or something, but it's dangerous.
- But when we went in the summertime, they had started to rebuild the path that the Sequoia had fallen across so that now you could and we climbed on it.
Examples
-
Some demonstrators are climbing on the statue to get a better view.
Fiction book (1990) -
And once you have it open like this, you can just climb on in to the back seats.
-
Now, climb on my back.
-
You go on and have yourself a good time and I'll climb on your back.
-
Her bed was so high that she had to climb on a step ladder to get into it.
Fiction book (1993) -
Pratt starts to climb on top of the wall to get a better look.
Fiction book (1993) -
As the trucks are emptied, children climb on top of the moving vehicles.
Academic text (2002) -
And beginners can climb on the same wall as really good climbers.
-
Climb on my back.
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The trainer called to the children, saying, 'You can climb on the pony for a quick ride!'
Synonyms
To move up using hands and feet, often with effort
To get onto something like a horse, bike, or bus quickly and lightly
To get on an animal or bike to ride
Climb onto a horse or bike
To get quickly onto the back of something like a horse or bike
To get onto the back of an animal like a horse to ride it
Jump onto a surface like a table or bed
To sit or stand with a leg on each side of something like a horse
Antonyms
How Difficult
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to get up onto the back or surface of something' is directly and predictably derived from combining 'climb' (go up physically) with 'on' (indicating location/onto). This motion + locative composition is cross-linguistically common and follows standard English patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will understand it.
Etymology
The phrasal verb climb on comes from a simple image: climb means going up and on shows getting onto something, like stepping onto a horse, a ladder, or playground equipment, and the parts make the picture easy to see. So it means 'to get up onto the back or surface of something'.