From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
pickup
n 1: a light truck with an open body and low sides and a
tailboard [syn: pickup, pickup truck]
2: a warrant to take someone into custody; "put out a pickup on
that man"
3: anything with restorative powers; "she needed the pickup that
coffee always gave her" [syn: pickup, pick-me-up]
4: a casual acquaintance; often made in hope of sexual
relationships
5: the attribute of being capable of rapid acceleration; "his
car has a lot of pickup" [syn: pickup, getaway]
6: mechanical device consisting of a light balanced arm that
carries the cartridge [syn: tone arm, pickup, {pickup
arm}]
7: an electro-acoustic transducer that is the part of the arm of
a record player that holds the needle and that is removable
[syn: cartridge, pickup]
8: the act or process of picking up or collecting from various
places; "garbage pickup is on Mondays and Thursdays"
9: the act of taking aboard passengers or freight
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Pickup \Pick"up\, or Pick-up \Pick"-up`\, n. [Colloq., Cant, or
Slang]
1. Act of picking up, as, in various games, the fielding or
hitting of a ball just after it strikes the ground.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]
2. That which picks up; specif.: (Elec.) same as Brush b.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]
3. One that is picked up, as a meal hastily got up for the
occasion, a chance acquaintance, an informal game, etc.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]
4. a social companion for the evening who is met without
prior arrangement, as at a singles bar; also, the act of
joining with such a companion in that fashion.
[PJC]
5. (Automobiles) acceleration; a measure of the ability of a
vehicle to accelerate.
[PJC]
6. (Electronics) a component of a phonograph which contains
the stylus and also components for converting the
vibrations of the stylus into electrical impulses for
subsequent processing into sound; often referred to as a
cartridge; also, the process of converting vibrations
into electrical impulses.
[PJC]
7. (Electronics) the conversion of sound or light into
electrical signals in a sound or image recording or
transmitting device.
[PJC]
8. (Vehicles) a small truck having an enclosed driver's
compartment (cab) but an open rear with usually low sides
and a tailgate. Also called pickup truck.
[PJC]
9. a hitchhiker who has been picked up.
[PJC]