idiom · neutral

get ahead

UK/ɡet əˈhɛd/US/ɡɛt əˈhɛd/get·a·HEAD

speakingtask2

to become more successful than others, especially at work or school

Examples

Band 8 sentence

Graduates who take internships and build networks early are more likely to get ahead in competitive industries.

Collocations

  • get ahead in life/career
  • do anything to get ahead

Word family

get ahead verb phrasegetting ahead verb phrase (gerund)got ahead verb phrase (past)

Common mistakes

get forwardget ahead

get ahead of someoneget ahead (in life/career)

Say it for a higher band

5succeed6move up7+get ahead

Synonyms

succeed

move up

Easily confused

get on

She worked late every night to get ahead in her department.

Related words

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In Success

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