Word.ws English Dictionary

getting out while the getting's good

getting out while the getting's good is the present participle and gerund of get out while the getting's good.

Meaning of get out while the getting's good

Verb

get out while the getting's good (third-person singular simple present gets out while the getting's good, present participle getting out while the getting's good, simple past got out while the getting's good, past participle (UK) got out while the getting's good or (US) gotten out while the getting's good)

  1. (colloquial) To leave at an opportune time or before adverse conditions arise.
    • Take your choice; get out while the getting's good, or we'll boom Glad-hand by starting a Boot Hill right here." A Boot Hill! Grinch reflected.1912, Sarah Comstock, The soddy, page 200
  2. (colloquial, idiomatic) To sell all or part of one's holdings in stocks, real estate, a business, etc. while conditions are good, particularly in anticipation of a drop in prices.
    • It costs pretty near as much to sell a used truck as a new one and there is usually ... close down business right away and get out while the getting's good.1924, “When You Put Through a Sale Without a Profit for Yourself Do You Call it a Sale?”, in James Artman, editor, The Commercial car journal, volume 28, page 9

Questions about getting out while the getting's good

What is getting out while the getting's good the present participle and gerund of?
Getting out while the getting's good is the present participle and gerund of get out while the getting's good.

Words near getting out while the getting's good in the dictionary

  1. getting out of someone's ear
  2. getting out of someone's face
  3. getting out of someone's hair
  4. getting out the vote
  5. getting out what one puts in
  6. getting out while the getting's good
  7. getting outside of
  8. getting over
  9. getting over on
  10. getting over oneself
  11. getting over the line

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: getting out while the getting's good (page history and authors); get out while the getting's good (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “getting out while the getting's good.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/getting_out_while_the_getting%27s_good. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.