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to pick up on
01
to notice something that is not immediately obvious
Transitive: to pick up on a situation
Grammatical Information
Composition
phrasal
Action verb
Regular
Inseparable
Particle
on
Base verb
pick up
Present tense
pick up on
3rd person singular
picks up on
Present participle
picking up on
Past simple
picked up on
Past participle
picked up on
Examples
As a skilled detective, he could pick up on subtle behavioral cues that indicated when someone was lying.
02
to express disapproval or correct someone's statement
Transitive: to pick up on an error or remark
Examples
In the debate, he misquoted a statistic, but his opponent immediately picked up on it and corrected him.
03
to refer to or comment on a topic or point that was mentioned earlier in a conversation
Transitive: to pick up on a topic or point
Examples
Earlier in our chat, you brought up a new book you were reading. I wanted to pick up on that and ask for the title.
