phrasal verb · informal

get someone's attention

/ɡet ˈsʌmwʌnz əˈtɛnʃən/AT·TEN·TION

speakingtask2

to make someone notice you or what you are doing

Examples

The bright poster really gets people's attention.

He waved his hand to get the waiter's attention.

A surprising statistic is the easiest way to get the examiner's attention in an essay opening.

Band 8 sentence

To make your introduction memorable, include a surprising fact to get the examiner's attention immediately.

Collocations

  • get someone's attention
  • catch/get the public's attention

Word family

attention nounattend verb

Common mistakes

get attention of someoneget someone's attention

make someone's attentionget someone's attention

Say it for a higher band

5attract attention6catch someone's eye7+get someone's attention

Synonyms

attract attention

catch someone's eye

Easily confused

catch someone's eye

The colourful advertisement caught my eye as I walked past.

Related words

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In get …

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