pick up on

Verb

pick up on (third-person singular simple present picks up on, present participle picking up on, simple past and past participle picked up on)

1. (idiomatic, transitive) To notice, observe, learn, or understand, especially something otherwise overlooked.
   • "Remember, I know more about it than only what you picked up on that morning."1882, Charlotte M. Yonge, chapter 18, in Magnum Bonum; or, Mother Carey's Brood
   • No wonder I didn't pick up on what was happening.1980, Norman Spinrad, The Mind Game, page 22

   Synonyms:

   grasp, spot

2. (idiomatic, transitive) To continue or build upon (for example, a task, analysis, or narrative), beginning from a point at which someone has previously stopped.
   • Andy Murray has landed in Valencia for next week’s ATP tournament to pick up on his interrupted year, six weeks after the Davis Cup tie against Poland when he played three times in successive days and exacerbated the damage to his left wrist.2009 October 31, Neil Harman, “Caroline Wozniacki reaches semi-finals”, in Times Online, UK, retrieved 24 May 2011

   Synonyms:

   resume

3. (idiomatic, transitive) To adopt a practice in which others already engage.
   • "What you've got to do is, you've got to study the guy and try to pick up on his techniques, try to pick up what he's real good at."2004 September 16, Patrick Saunders, “Eye on the Jaguars”, in Denver Post, page D10
   • China was slow to pick up on the reality-TV trend.2010 June 30, Justin Bergman, “China's TV Dating Shows: For Love or Money?”, in Time

   Synonyms:

   imitate