get even
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Verb: 1. To take revenge or obtain retribution: To inflict harm or unpleasantness on someone because they have previously inflicted harm or unpleasantness on you, with the aim of making things equal or "even." 2. To equalize a score or situation: To bring a competitive score or a state of advantage/disadvantage back to a level position.
Usage and Examples
- Taking Revenge:
- After being embarrassed in the meeting, he was determined to get even.
- She vowed to get even with the person who spread the rumor.
- Equalizing a Score:
- The team scored just before halftime to get even at 1-1.
- He paid for my lunch yesterday, so I'll buy coffee today to get even.
Advanced Usage and Nuances
- The phrase often implies a negative or retaliatory context when referring to revenge. It suggests a desire to balance a perceived wrong.
- The construction is almost always "get even with [someone]" when referring to revenge.
- In sports or games, it is used intransitively to describe the state of the score.
Variants and Related Words
- Even (verb): To make level or equal.
- Get back at (phrasal verb): A close synonym for the revenge meaning of "get even."
Synonyms
- Retaliate: To make an attack or assault in return for a similar attack.
- Pay back: To return punishment or injury to (someone who has harmed one).
- Square accounts: To settle a debt or grievance.
- Equalize: To make things equal in score or status.
Related Phrasal Verbs and Idioms
- Get even with: The standard construction for expressing revenge against a specific person or group.
- He spent years plotting to get even with his former partner.
- Even the score: An idiom with identical meaning, focusing on the act of making things equal, often through retaliation.
- The article was written to even the score for the earlier criticism.
Verb
- take revenge or even out a score
- I cannot accept the defeat--I want to get even
- compensate; make the score equal