Pick someone's brains means to ask for advice from someone who knows a subject better than you. It is usually a polite, slightly humorous way to ask for help: Can I pick your brains about...? British English more often uses brains, American English brain. The expression is informal; when writing to someone you don't know, Could I ask your advice about...? is a better choice.
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pick someone's brains (about/on + noun); Can I pick your brains about...?; US: pick someone's brain
- Can I pick your brains about renting a flat in Edinburgh?
- Before my job interview, I picked my cousin's brains because she works at the same bank.
- After class, our teacher lets students pick her brains about university applications.
What changed
First versionCan I pick up your brains about the visa process?
RevisionCan I pick your brains about the visa process?
Pick up is a very familiar phrasal verb (to lift something or to collect someone), so up is easy to add out of habit. But with up, the phrase sounds as if you want to lift someone's brains off the floor. The idiom needs just pick, so up was removed.
Rack your brains looks similar but means to think very hard, trying to remember or work something out yourself: I racked my brains, but I couldn't remember his name. Pick someone's brains means going to another person for advice.
Your turn
My sister is an accountant, so before filling in my tax return I ___ about a few tricky questions.
Show the answer
picked her brains — The sister is an accountant, and the speaker went to her for advice as an expert: picked her brains. Rack your brains means to think hard yourself, so it doesn't work with someone else's brains.
You need advice from a specialist you know: a lawyer, a doctor or a programmer. Write a short request: say what they know about and what you want to ask.
Since you've worked as a web developer for years, could I pick your brains about building a website for my bakery?
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