rope in — persuade someone to join or help (informal)
phrasal verbC1IELTS 7+informaloccasional
to persuade or pressure someone to take part in an activity or help with something, often when they were not planning to.
Say it like a native
Textbook I was persuaded, somewhat reluctantly, to assist with the event.
Native I got roped into helping with the event.
'Rope in' captures being talked into something you didn't plan on; the formal version is flat.
Pattern: rope sb in (to do sth / for sth)
In use
- I got roped in to help with the school fundraiser, even though I was hoping for a quiet weekend.daily life
- In my experience, people often get roped in to volunteer at community events because organisers are short on help and know how to persuade others to join.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ They roped me to help.
✓ They roped me into helping.
'Rope someone INTO' (doing) something — don't drop 'into'.
Common collocations
rope + someone + in/into— me in, into helping, into it, volunteers in
Don't confuse it
Unlike the literal sense of 'rope in' (to physically pull something in with a rope, which is rare), this figurative sense is about persuading people to get involved, especially when they are not eager.