[Grammar] Using "Let's get..."

[rmontgomery]

I have a Spanish learner who wants "a rule" for using "let's get + infinitve.." versus simply "let's + v." (i.e. "Let's get to know one another." Versus, "Let's dance!" or, "Let's go to the movies.)" In Spanish there are very specific rules for the subjunctive mood. She used, "Let's know one another," and my correction was, "Let's get to know one another." My guess was that "get" is needed when there is a direct object as in "one another", while "Let's go,dance, play etc are intransitive. But this doesn't seem right (i.e. "Let's spend some money)."
I ended up with the old "it's context" answer.:-(

 

[Nightmare85]

***Neither a teacher nor a native speaker.***

Hi and welcome :up:
I believe "Let's get to know one another." has nothing to do with a direct object.
I want to get to know someone.
Let's get to know someone.
I want to watch some movies.
Let's watch some movies.

You can't say:
Let's know someone.
If you want to know who someone is, you have to get to know him/her.
Let's get to watch some movies.
At least this one sounds strange...

I hope I understood your question.

Cheers!

 

[Barb_D]

Let's get to... means you want to start doing something.

Let's get to work -- Let's start working.
Let's work now and eat later -- not a suggestion that we START to work, but simply to work.

Let's get moving -- Let's start to move.
Let's move it, people! -- we may already be moving, but what this means is "move faster."

So let's get to know each other means that you want to start the process of learning about each other.

Does that work? What exceptions can we think of?

 

[Nightmare85]

But according to your logic it should be:
Let's get to get to know one another. :-o
=Let's start to get to know one another.

:?:

Cheers!

 

[emsr2d2]

With the specific example you gave, the answer (to me) is that "to get to know [someone/something]" is a verb in its own right, meaning "to acquaint oneself with". The "get to" part is an intrinsic part of the verb.