get a life —(sl., usually imper.) stop worrying about petty things; find smth. useful or meaningful to do with oneself:
- I wish Janet would get a life. She’s always complaining about nothing.
get life—be sentenced to life imprisonment:
- Shame on those who continue to campaign to grant him early parole…. Most killers get life in prison for premeditated murder.
See also: make a life for oneself / make a living for oneself.