idiom (v) · neutral
learn the ropes
UK/lɜːn ðə rəʊps/US/lɝn ðə roʊps/LEARN·the·ROPES
speakingtask2
to learn how to do a job or activity, especially the basic skills
Examples
“It took her a month to learn the ropes at the new job.”
“During the internship I learned the ropes of working in a busy office.”
“You'll learn the ropes quickly if you ask questions.”
Band 8 sentence
“As a junior researcher she learned the ropes rapidly by shadowing more experienced colleagues and asking targeted questions.”
Collocations
- learn the ropes of the job
- learn the ropes quickly
Word family
learn the ropes verb phrase
Common mistakes
learn ropes→learn the ropes
Say it for a higher band
5get used to the job→6get the hang of it→7+learn the ropes
Synonyms
get the hang of
pick up the basics
Easily confused
get the hang of
“After a week I finally got the hang of using the new database.”
Related words
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In Study
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