Meaning & use
getting laced
Last updated
“getting laced” is a form of “get laced”.
Meanings
phrasephrasal verbinformal
Having a drink or food secretly mixed with alcohol or a drug, so that it affects the person who consumes it.
Grammar: Passive in feel: the punch got laced; the active form is lace something.
Patterns
- get laced with something
- drink gets laced
He worried the drinks were getting laced at the party.
The cake was getting laced with brandy as it cooked.
Police warned students about getting laced drinks in clubs.
phrasephrasal verb
Tying or fastening shoes, boots or a garment by pulling its laces tight.
Grammar: Often followed by up: getting laced up.
Patterns
- get laced up
- get laced into something
The skaters were getting laced up before practice.
She is getting laced into a corset for the costume.
I am getting laced and ready to run.
phrasephrasal verbslangvulgar
Having sex, in very informal and slightly crude slang.
Grammar: Rare slang, usually about a young person; avoid in polite conversation.
Patterns
- get laced
Teenagers sometimes use getting laced as slang for hooking up, though the phrase is dated.
The slang phrase appears in old films as a joke about a date.
Most people today would say another phrase than getting laced.
Word forms
| third person singular | gets laced |
|---|---|
| past tense | got laced |
| past participle | gotten laced |
| -ing form | getting laced |
Common combinations
- getting laced up
- The hikers were getting laced up before sunrise.
- getting laced with alcohol
- The punch was getting laced with alcohol.
- drinks getting laced
- Bars train staff to spot drinks getting laced.
- getting laced with drugs
- He feared the food was getting laced with drugs.
- boots getting laced
- She watched her boots getting laced by the fire.
Synonyms and how they differ
- getting spiked
- Getting spiked is the common word for a drink secretly drugged, and is more usual than getting laced.
- tying up
- Tying up is the plain word for fastening laces, with no slang meaning.
- getting fastened
- Getting fastened is general and fits straps, buckles or laces.
- getting doctored
- Getting doctored means a drink was secretly altered, often with something harmful.
Word family
Commonly confused: getting laced or laced?
getting laced vs laced
Laced with a s sound should not be confused with laid, which is a past form of lay or the slang for sex.
Practice
Staff at the bar watched carefully in case someone tried to ___ a drink with something harmful.
Choose one answer.
To lace a drink is to secretly add something to it. Laze, lack and lance are different words that do not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “getting laced”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.