Verbs, with definitions

account for something - to give an

explanation
accuse someone of something - to
charge someone with something wrong
(e.g., a crime, an offense)
add something to something - to put
something together with something else
agree about/on something - to have the
same opinion about something as
someone else
agree with someone / something - to
have the same opinion as someone else
answer for something - to be
responsible for one's actions
apply for something - to make an
application or request for something
approve of something - to be in favor of
something
argue about something - to disagree or
quarrel about something
argue with someone - to quarrel with
someone
arrive in (some city) - to come to some
city
ask about someone / something - to ask
for information about someone or
something
ask for something - to request
something
be above someone / something - to be
higher than (literally and figuratively)
be after - to be later than the specified
hour
be against something - to oppose
something
be into something - to be interested in
something
be out of something - not to have
begin with something - to start with
something
believe in someone / something - to
have faith in someone / something
belong to someone - to be property of

Examples
How can you account for your absence at
the meeting?
He was accused of murder. They accused
him of murder. He was accused of stealing
money.
She added a little milk to coffee. Add two
to three - how much do you get?
They agree about everything. They don't
always agree on the way children should
be raised.
I don't agree with you about it. I don't
agree with your plan.
He will have to answer for his actions. He
should answer for his rude behavior.
He applied for the position of sales
representative. I want to apply for a job.
Her father doesn't approve of her
boyfriend. Her mother doesn't approve of
smoking.
What are they arguing about? He is always
arguing about something.
Stop arguing with me!
He arrived in London yesterday. We
arrived in Chicago at night.
He asked me about my relatives. He asked
me about my future plans.
He asked for a cup of coffee. He asked for
a permission to leave.
The painting is above the mantelpiece. The
weight of this box is above 50 kilograms.
He is above suspicion.
It was after eleven at night. It is ten
minutes after five.
I am against your plan.
He is into computers. She is into jazz.
We are out of sugar. We are out of time.
Begin with Chapter 3.
He believes in you. She believes in justice
for all.
This house belongs to his son. This bag

someone
blame someone for something - to say
that someone is responsible for
something wrong
borrow something from someone - to
take and have to give back / pay back
break into (a house) - to get in by force
break with - to sever relations; to cease
one's connection with someone or
something
call someone at (this telephone number)
- to dial the number and speak to
someone
care about someone / something - 1. to
like; 2. to be interested in something
care for someone / something - 1. to
like; 2. to want; 3. to look after someone
/ something
change something for something - to
exchange for, trade for something
1. change into something - to put on a
new set of clothes; 2. change into
someone / something - to turn into, to
convert into someone / something
different
charge for something - to ask as a price
for service or goods
check into (a hotel, a hospital) - to
register at arrival
check out of (a hotel) - to pay the bill
and leave (the hotel)
come across something - to find by
chance
come from (some place) - to be from
(some place)
come into (some place) - to enter
come to something - to reach (place,
result, position, state, etc.)

comment on something - to give one's

opinion about something
compare someone / something with
someone / something - to examine to
see the difference or similarity

belongs to me.
She blamed him for the loss of her bag. He
is to blame for this terrible mistake.
I borrowed fifty dollars from Tom. I
borrowed a bicycle from Kate.
They broke into the house at night.
He broke with his family. He broke with
his old friends. He broke with the past.
Call me at 555-3246.

1. He cares about his little sister. 2. I don't

care about your opinion.
1. He cares for his little sister. 2. Do you
care for a drink? 3. Will you care for my
cat while I'm away?
Can I change this bag for that one? Could I
change these dollars for euros, please?
1. I need to change into warmer clothes. 2.
The little boy in the fairy tale was changed
into a monster. I'd like to change these
dollars into pounds, please.
How much do you charge for a single
room?
We checked into a hotel at night. She
checked into a hospital two days ago.
I checked out of the hotel at noon.
Yesterday I came across an interesting
article on vegetarian cooking.
He comes from a small town in France.
Mary came into the room.
She came to Moscow yesterday. The bill
comes to $50. The struggle came to an end
in July. The military came to power in
1978. He fainted, but he came to himself
quickly.
He commented on the current situation.
Compare this car with that car. This writer
is often compared with Leo Tolstoy.

complain about something - to be

dissatisfied with something
complain to someone - to report a
complaint to somebody
concentrate (something) on something to give full attention to something

She is always complaining about her job.

She complained about her noisy neighbor.
Complain to the manager (about it).
Complain to the police about his actions.
They concentrated their efforts on getting
the contract. I am trying to concentrate on
my work.

congratulate someone on something - to

express praise to someone for success in
something
connect to - to join two things together

I congratulated him on his new job. He

congratulated her on her excellent exam
results.
Are you connected to the Internet? Can
you connect me to Mr. Cole?
1. This bank is connected with several big
banks. Her work is connected with music.
2. Can you connect me with Mr. Cole?
Her father consented to her marriage.

connect with - 1. to have a connection

with; 2. to join two things together
consent to something - to agree to
something
consist of - to be composed of (parts,
ingredients)
contribute something to something - to
give (money, time, etc.)
correspond with someone - to be in
correspondence with
count on someone - to depend / rely on
someone
count to (some number) - to count
dedicate to - 1. to give one's time,
energy, effort to something; 2. to do
something in honor of someone
depart for (some place) - to leave for
(some place)
depart from (some place) - to leave
(some place)
depend on someone / something - 1. to
be conditioned by; 2. to rely on, to
count on someone
devote to - to give one's time, energy,
effort to something or someone
disagree about/on something - to have
different opinions
disagree with someone / something - to
have a different opinion from someone
else

Water consists of hydrogen and oxygen.

The book consists of five chapters.
He contributed a lot of money, time and
effort to this research.
He corresponds with many famous people.
You can always count on me for help.
Close your eyes and count to 10.
1. This scientist dedicated his whole life to
research. 2. He dedicated his latest novel
to his daughter.
The train departs for Paris at one o'clock.
The train departs from Rome at 6:30.
1. It depends on the weather. 2. You can
always depend on him.
This scientist devoted his whole life to
research. He devotes his Sundays to
children.
They disagree about everything. They
often disagree on the way children should
be raised.
I disagree with you about it. I disagree
with your plan.

do without something - to live without

something
drive at - to drive at a certain speed

We have to do without chocolate.

He was driving at 70 miles per hour when

the accident happened.
drop out of school - to quit school
He dropped out of school when he was 15.
equip someone / something with
The kitchen is equipped with modern
something - to provide with necessary
appliances. They equipped the expedition
things
with tools and maps.
excuse someone for something - to
Please excuse me for being late. Excuse
forgive someone for something
me for interrupting you, but could you give
me a copy of the report?
expect something from someone - to
Don't expect good work from him, he is
expect (good work, results, etc.)
lazy and careless. I expected more from
her.
explain something to someone - to make Can you explain this task to the students?
clear
fall in love with someone or something
They fell in love and got married. He fell
- to begin to love
in love with Mary. She fell in love with
jazz music.
fall over something - to trip over
He fell over a stair and hurt his knee.
something and fall
feel about - to have an opinion about
How do you feel about his new plan?
forget about someone / something
Sorry, I forgot about your request.
forgive someone for something
Please forgive me for losing your book.
get into something - to enter (place,
Get into the car! She doesn't get into town
state, etc.)
often. He got into trouble.
get off the bus, train, plane - to leave the He got off the train at the River Station.
bus, train, plane
get on the bus, train, plane - to take a
He got on the bus on Maple Avenue.
bus, train, plane
get out of (some place) - to exit
Get out of the house! He got out of the car
and walked to the bank.
get over something - to recover from an You'll get over it soon. I'm glad you got
illness or bad experience
over your illness so quickly.
get through something - to go through
The refrigerator won't get through this
something
narrow door. I don't know how he got
through college, he never studied.
get to (some place) - to reach (some
We got to London at night.
place)
give something to someone - to present, Give the book to Ann. She often gives to
to hand something to someone /
charity. Give my regards to your family.
something
He gives all his time to work.
go by - 1. to go past someone /
1. She went by me without saying hello. 2.
something, pass by; 2. to travel using
He always goes to work by train.
some transport
go down (the stairs, road, etc.) - 1. to
1. Go down the stairs and turn right. 2. He

descend; 2. to go along the street

go for something - to go and do
something
go into something - 1. to enter; 2. to
examine in detail
go over/through something - to review,
to look through something
go through something - 1. to move
through, pass through something; 2. to
look through something
go to (some place) - to reach, visit,
travel to, attend (some place)

go up (the stairs, the hill, etc.) - to climb

(the stairs, the hill, etc.)
graduate from (school) - to finish school
happen to someone
have something against someone - to
have a reason to be against
hear about someone / something - to
learn about someone /something
hear from someone - to have news from
someone
help someone with something - to assist
someone with something
hint at something - to suggest something
indirectly
hint to someone - to suggest something
indirectly to someone
inform someone about/of something - to
tell someone about something
insist on something - to demand
introduce someone to someone - to
present someone to other people
invest something in something - to put
in (money, hopes, work, time)
invite someone to something - to ask to
come as a guest
judge by something - to form an opinion
on the basis of something
knock at/on (the door) - to beat lightly
on something
lag behind someone - to be behind
others in something

went down the street to the bank.

Let's go for a walk. Let's go for a drive.
1. He went into that building. 2. I can't go
into your report now.
Go over these chapters again.
1. The refrigerator won't go through this
narrow door. She went through the park.
He's gone through a lot of suffering. 2. Go
through these chapters again.
Go to bed. Go to page 9. He went to the
bank. He went to Rome last year. Her son
goes to law school. I have to go to work
now. Does this bus go to the center?
We went up the stairs to the third floor.
Jack and Jill went up the hill.
He graduated from college in 1997.
What happened to Tom? He looks awful.
What do you have against my plan? He has
a couple of things against you.
Have you heard about the accident?
I haven't heard from him in years.
What can I help you with? He helped me
with my report /with my work.
What are you hinting at? He hinted at this
possibility.
He hinted to me that he wanted to buy that
house.
He informed the committee about his
decision to resign from his post.
He insists on selling the house.
She introduced him to her friends.
He invested a lot of money, time, and
effort in this business.
They invited me to dinner. They invited us
to the wedding.
Judging by the look of the house, nobody
lives in it. Don't judge a book by its cover!
Somebody is knocking on the door. I
knocked at the door.
The little boy lagged behind the older
boys. He is lagging behind the other

laugh at - 1. to laugh (at a funny joke);

2. to make fun of someone /something
lead to something - 1. to guide to
someone / something; 2. to result in
something
leave for (some place) - 1. to go to (a
place); 2. to abandon one thing and start
another
leave from (some place) - to depart
from (some place)
leave something to someone - to give
something to someone (as inheritance or
for work)
lend something to someone - to give
something to someone on the condition
of returning it
listen to someone / something - 1. pay
attention by listening; 2. to obey
live on something - 1. to live on a
certain street; 2. to live on certain food;
3. to live on certain income
long for something - to want something
very much
look after someone / something - to
watch, take care of someone /something
look at someone / something - 1. to take
a look at someone / something; 2. to
consider something
look for someone / something - to
search for someone / something
look into something - to examine,
investigate something
look out of (the window) - to look
outside
look over / through something - to
examine, go over, go through something
make from - to produce, to create
something from something
be made of - to be made up of some
material
mark with something - to make more
visible

students.
1. We all laughed at his jokes. 2. The boys
laughed at the new boy. They laughed at
his accent.
1. He led us to the director's office. This
road leads to a nice lake. 2. His
carelessness led to a tragic accident.
The train leaves for Paris at twelve o'clock.
He left his wife for a younger woman. He
left his job for a sailing expedition.
The train leaves from Rome at 6:30.
She left the house to her son. Leave it to
me, I'll do it. Leave this task to Jim.
I lent fifty dollars to a friend of mine. I lent
my bicycle to Tom till Saturday.

1. Listen to the teacher. He is listening to

music. 2.You should listen to your parents.
1. She lives on Baker Street. 2. She lives
on apples, bread, and cheese. 3. She lives
on 500 dollars a month.
He longed for a real friend, but he was
always alone.
A babysitter looks after the children when
their mother is at work. Who looks after
this garden?
1. He looked at her for a long time. What
are you looking at? 2. I'll look at your
report tomorrow.
I'm looking for Tom Brown. What are you
looking for?
The police are looking into the matter. You
should look into this problem.
He looked out of the window.
Look over your notes before the test.
She made a summer dress from a length of
silk. Butter is made from milk.
This ring is made of gold. This dress is
made of silk.
Mark mistakes with a red pencil.

move into (a house) - to begin to reside

in (a house)
move to (another city, house) - to
change the place of living
name someone after someone - to name
in honor of someone
object to something - to be against
something
offer (a certain sum) for something - to
intend to give
offer something to someone - to intend
to give
open with something - 1. to open with a
tool; 2. to start with
owe for something - to have to pay for
something
owe to someone - 1. have to pay back to
someone; 2. to feel indebted to someone
/ something
pass by someone / something - to go
past, go by someone / something
pay for something - to give money for
something
point at someone - to direct (a finger,
gun) to someone
prefer (one thing) to (another) - to like
one thing more than the other thing
prevent someone from doing something
- to stop someone from doing something
provide with something - to give,
supply with
pull into something - 1. to drag into; 2.
to come to some place (about a vehicle)
pull out of something - 1. take out of; 2.
to leave (about a vehicle)
push someone into something - to make
someone get in
reach for something - to stretch one's
hand to get something
rely on someone / something - to count
on, depend on someone / something
remind someone of something or
someone - to cause someone to

They've just moved into a new house.

They moved to another house last year.
He was named after his famous uncle.
They named their son after his uncle.
I objected to his plan.
How much do they offer for the house?
They offer 50,000 dollars for it.
They offered four thousand dollars to her
mother.
1. He opened the door with a key. 2. The
director opened the meeting with a joke.
How much do I owe you for the book?
1. He owes $15,000 to the law company
that represented him. 2. He owes his
success in life to his family and to his hard
work.
She passed by me without saying hello.

How much did you pay for this bag?

Don't point at people! He pointed a gun at
him.
I prefer this song to that one. I prefer tea to
coffee.
How can I prevent him from making this
terrible mistake? His illness prevented him
from coming to the meeting.
He provided us with information, food,
and money for our trip.
1. They pulled him into a car and drove
off. 2. The bus is pulling into the station.
1. He pulled a wallet out of his pocket. 2.
The bus is pulling out of the station now.
They pushed him into a car and drove off.
He reached for the vase on the shelf above.
She reached for her bag.
You can always rely on him. You can
always rely on his help.
This town reminds me of my hometown.
Thank you for reminding me of the

remember
remind someone about something - to
tell someone not to forget about
something
remove something from (a place) - to
take away from (a place)
replace someone / something by/with
someone / something

meeting.
Thank you for reminding me about the
meeting.
Please remove your books from the table. I
removed the stains from your shirt.
Coal was replaced by electricity. Tom is
sick, so we will have to replace him with
Jim. He replaced the old pipe with a new
one.
He reported on the current situation.

report on something - to give

information on something
report something to someone - to inform He reported her absence to the boss.
someone about something
run across - to meet or find by chance
I ran across an old friend yesterday. I ran
across her old photo in that book.
run for - 1. run to get something; 2. to
1. Run for help! Run for cover! 2. He is
try to get a position of
going to run for President.
run into someone - to meet by chance
I ran into an old friend yesterday.
run out of something - 1. to run outside; 1. He ran out of the house. 2. We've run
2. to end (about supplies)
out of sugar. We are running out of time.
run to - 1. to go to someone for help or
1. She always runs to him for help. 2. The
advice; 2. to come to the amount
bill ran to $300.
save (something) for someone /
Save this wine for next week. We have to
something - to preserve, put aside for
save money for Mike's education. He's
future use
saving for a new computer.
save someone from something - to
rescue someone from danger, harm,
failure, loss, etc.
say something about something - to
express an opinion about something
search for someone / something - to
look for someone / something
see through something - to see what is
behind something
shout at someone - to yell at someone
speak about something - to talk about
something
speak to/with someone - to talk to/with
someone
spend (money, time) on something

stand by someone / something - to

The man saved the boy from drowning. We

can't save him from his own foolishness.
What can you say about his new book?
He is searching for eternal beauty. The
police are searching the suburbs for the
missing boy.
I can't see through this glass. We saw
through his clever plan.
Don't shout at children.
He spoke about the necessity of reforms.
She is speaking with her friend right now.
Who do you want to speak to?
How much time did you spend on this
report? How much money do you spend on
food?
She stood by him in everything he did. He

support, be loyal to someone

stand for something - to symbolize,
mean
start with something - to begin with
something
stay at (some place) - to live at some
place for a while
stay with someone - to be with
someone, visit with someone
stop at - to stop at a certain place

stood by his decision despite her protest.

What does the letter Q in IQ stand for?
Start with Chapter 3.

We stayed at the Sheraton Hotel. I stayed

at my sister's for two weeks.
Stay with me for an hour. He stayed with
us for Christmas.
He stopped at the red traffic light. He will
stop at nothing! We stopped at my sister's.
stop someone from doing something - to How can I stop him from making this
prevent someone from doing something terrible mistake?
take after someone - to resemble one's
He takes after his father in appearance. She
parents in character or looks
takes after her mother in character.
take someone for someone - to confuse
Sorry, I took you for your sister. Who do
someone with someone else
you take me for?
talk about something - to speak about
What are you talking about?
something
talk someone into something - to
He talked her into selling the house.
persuade into doing something
talk someone out of something - to
He talked her out of selling the house.
persuade someone out of doing
something
talk to/with someone - to speak to/with
She is talking with her friend right now.
someone
tell someone about something - to
He told me about your plans.
inform someone about something
tell by something - to judge by
I could tell by his voice that he was scared.
something
thank someone for something - to say
She thanked him for his help. Thank you
thank you
for telling me about it.
think about/of someone / something
I have never thought about it before.
touch on something - to mention as a
We touched on many questions briefly.
subject
translate something into (another
Translate this passage into English.
language)
translate something from (another
This passage was translated from German.
language)
turn around (the corner) - to go around
He turned around the corner and went
(the corner)
down the street to the bank.
turn into someone / something - to
He turned into a monster. He was turned
change into someone / something
into a stone.
turn to someone / something - to move
Turn to me, please. He turned to the
and face someone / something
window and didn't answer.
vote for someone / something - to vote
Five members voted for the candidate. Did

in favor of someone / something

vote against someone / something - to
oppose someone / something
wait for someone / something
warn about something - to advise about
(risk, danger, etc.)
warn against something - to advise
avoiding something
wonder about something - to think
about something with curiosity or trying
to understand
wonder at something - to admire,
marvel at or be surprised by something
work at - 1. to have a job at some place;
2. work at/on something - to work
(hard) on something
work for - 1. to work for an employer;
2. to get a certain pay for work
work in (some place) - to have a job at
some place
worry about someone / something - to
feel concerned about someone /
something
write about something or someone - to
describe in writing
write to someone - to address letters to
someone

you vote for the new plan or against it?

One member voted against the resolution.
I waited for the bus for twenty minutes.
He warned me about the danger there. He
warned you about the boss's temper.
He warned me against going there alone.
I am still wondering about his behavior at
the meeting. I wonder about the origin of
this problem.
I wondered at his strength and composure
in such a difficult situation.
1. He works at a bank. She works at IBM.
2. Work at your pronunciation. He is still
working on his new novel.
1. He works for IBM. He works for a
newspaper. 2. He agreed to work for
$2,000 a month. He works for free.
He works in a bank. She works in a
restaurant.
She worries about her son. She is worried
about her son. What are you worrying
about? Don't worry about money.
He wrote an article about his trip to Spain.
In his letter, he writes about an old friend
of his who lives in our city.
She wrote a letter to the manager