pick

verb

/pɪk/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they pick	/pɪk/ /pɪk/
he / she / it picks	/pɪks/ /pɪks/
past simple picked	/pɪkt/ /pɪkt/
past participle picked	/pɪkt/ /pɪkt/
-ing form picking	/ˈpɪkɪŋ/ /ˈpɪkɪŋ/

Idioms Phrasal Verbs

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[transitive] (rather informal) to choose somebody/something from a group of people or things
- pick somebody/something Pick a number from one to twenty.
- They are picking the final team this weekend.
- It's time to pick a side (= decide who you support).
- He picked his words carefully.
- At the beach we picked a spot to sit down.
- pick somebody/something to do something He has been picked to play in this week's game.
- pick somebody/something for something Have you been picked for the team?
- pick somebody/something as something It was picked as the best film in the competition.
Synonyms choose
choose
- select
- pick
- decide
- opt
- go for
These words all mean to decide which thing or person you want out of the ones that are available.
- choose to decide which thing or person you want out of the ones that are available:
  You choose—I can’t decide.
- select [often passive] to choose somebody/something, usually carefully, from a group of people or things:
  He was selected for the team.
  a randomly selected sample of 23 schools
- pick (rather informal) to choose somebody/something from a group of people or things:
  She picked the best cake for herself.
choose, select or pick?Choose is the most general of these words and the only one that can be used without an object. When you select something, you choose it carefully, unless you actually say that it is selected randomly/at random. Pick is a more informal word and often a less careful action, used especially when the choice being made is not very important.
- decide to choose between two or more possibilities:
  We’re still trying to decide on a venue.
- opt to choose to take or not to take a particular course of action:
  After graduating she opted for a career in music.
  After a lot of thought, I opted against buying a motorbike.
- go for something (rather informal) to choose something:
  I think I’ll go for the fruit salad.
Patterns
- to choose/decide between A and/or B
- to choose/select/pick A from B
- to opt/go for somebody/something
- to choose/decide/opt to do something
- to choose/select/pick somebody/something carefully/at random
- randomly chosen/selected/picked
see also hand-picked
Extra Examples
- Companies want to pick the best candidates for the job.
- There are so many good ones it's hard to pick a favourite.
- They picked Jane as the captain.
- She picked the best cake for herself.
- Have I picked a bad time to talk to you?
Topics Preferences and decisionsa2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- at random
- randomly
- out
- …
preposition
- as
- for
See full entry
[transitive] pick something to take flowers, fruit, etc. from the plant or the tree where they are growing
- to pick grapes/strawberries/cotton
- flowers freshly picked from the garden
- The common was a great place to go blackberry picking.
Extra Examples
- They picked some flowers and arranged them into a beautiful bouquet.
- freshly picked strawberries
Topics Farmingb1
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
phrases
- freshly picked
See full entry
[transitive] to pull or remove something or small pieces of something from something else, especially with your fingers
- pick something + adv./prep. She picked bits of fluff from his sweater.
- He picked the nuts off the top of the cake.
- Names were picked at random out of a hat.
- pick something to pick your nose (= put your finger inside your nose to remove dried mucus)
- to pick your teeth (= use a small sharp piece of wood or plastice to remove pieces of food from your teeth)
- pick something + adj. The dogs picked the bones clean (= ate all the meat from the bones).
(North American English)
(also pluck British and North American English)
[intransitive, transitive] pick (something) to play a musical instrument, especially a guitar, by pulling the strings with your fingers

Word Originverb Middle English (earlier as pike, which continues in dialect use): of unknown origin. Compare with Dutch pikken ‘pick, peck’, and German picken ‘peck, puncture’, also with French piquer ‘to prick’.

Idioms

have a bone to pick with somebody

(informal) to be angry with somebody about something and want to discuss it with them

pick and choose

to choose only those things that you like or want very much
- You have to take any job you can get—you can't pick and choose.
Topics Preferences and decisionsc2

pick somebody’s brains

(informal) to ask somebody a lot of questions about something because they know more about the subject than you do
- I need to pick your brains: what can you tell me about credit unions?

pick a fight/quarrel (with somebody)

to deliberately start a fight or an argument with somebody
- He had drunk too much and was ready to pick a fight with anyone who crossed his path.
- She tried to pick a quarrel with me.
Topics Opinion and argumentc2

pick holes in something

to find the weak points in something such as a plan, suggestion, etc.
- It was easy to pick holes in his arguments.

pick a lock

to open a lock without a key, using something such as a piece of wire
- The burglars must have picked the lock on the back door.

pick somebody’s pocket

to steal something from somebody’s pocket without them noticing
- The back pocket on a pair of jeans is the easiest one to pick.
related noun pickpocketTopics Crime and punishmentc2

pick/pull/tear somebody/something to pieces/shreds

(informal) to criticize somebody, or their work or ideas, very severely

pick/pull/tear somebody/something to pieces/shreds

(informal) to criticize somebody, or their work or ideas, very severely
- Their case was torn to shreds by the defence lawyer.

pick up the bill, tab, etc. (for something)

(informal) to pay for something
- The company picked up the tab for his hotel room.
- The government will continue to pick up college fees for some students.

pick up the pieces

to return or to help somebody return to a normal situation, particularly after a shock or a disaster
- You cannot live your children's lives for them; you can only be there to pick up the pieces when things go wrong.

pick up speed

to go faster
- The train began to pick up speed.

pick up the threads

to return to an earlier situation or way of life after a period doing something else

pick your way (across, along, among, over, through something)

to walk carefully, choosing the safest, driest, etc. place to put your feet
- She picked her way delicately over the rough ground.
- We picked our way carefully over the jagged rocks.

pick a winner

to choose a horse, etc. that you think is most likely to win a race
- He's very good at picking winners.
(informal) to make a very good choiceTopics Preferences and decisionsc2

ripe for the picking

offering somebody an ideal opportunity to gain an advantage
- This is an opportunity ripe for the picking.
- The Raiders' defense is ripe for the picking.

pick

noun

/pɪk/

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[singular] (rather informal) an act of choosing something
- Take your pick (= choose).
- The winner gets first pick of the prizes.
Extra Examples
- Which do you want? Take your pick.
- Red or green? Take your pick.
- She had her pick of the young single men at the party.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verb + pick
- have
- take
phrases
- get first pick
- take first pick
See full entry
[countable] (informal) a person or thing that is chosen
- She was his pick for best actress.
Synonyms choice
choice
- favourite
- preference
- selection
- pick
These are all words for a person or thing that is chosen, or that is liked more than others.
- choice a person or thing that is chosen:
  She’s the obvious choice for the job.
- favourite/favorite a person or thing that you like more than the others of the same type:
  Which one’s your favourite?
- preference a thing that is liked better or best:
  Tastes and preferences vary from individual to individual.
favourite or preference?Your favourites are the things you like best, and that you have, do, listen to, etc. often; your preferences are the things that you would rather have or do if you can choose.
- selection a number of people or things that have been chosen from a larger group:
  A selection of reader’s comments are published below.
- pick (rather informal) a person or thing that is chosen:
  She was his pick for best actress.
Patterns
- somebody’s choice/favourite/pick for something
- somebody’s choice/selection/pick as something
- an obvious choice/favourite/selection
- a(n) excellent/good/popular/fine choice/selection
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verb + pick
- have
- take
phrases
- get first pick
- take first pick
See full entry
[singular] the pick of something (rather informal) the best thing or things in a group
- We're reviewing the pick of this month's new books.
- I think we got the pick of the bunch (= the best in the group).
(also pickaxe, North American English also pickax)
[countable] a large heavy tool that has a curved metal bar with sharp ends fixed at the centre to a wooden handle. It is used for breaking rocks or hard ground.
- picks and shovels
[countable] (informal) a plectrum (= a small piece of metal, plastic, etc. used for plucking the strings of a guitar or similar instrument)Topics Musicc2