Phrasal Verbs List

Abbreviations: sby=somebody; sthg=something

Phrasal verb Meaning Example sentence

ask sby out invite on a date Babar asked Jameel out to dinner and a movie.
ask many people the
ask around I asked around but nobody has seen my wallet.
same question
add up to sthg equal Your purchases add up to Rs. 10000/=.
back sthg up reverse You'll have to back up your car so that I can get out.
My wife backed me up over my decision to quit my
back sby up support
job.
The racing car blew up after it crashed into the
blow up explode
fence.
blow sthg up add air We have to blow 50 balloons up for the party.
stop functioning (vehicle, Our car broke down at the side of the highway in
break down
machine) the snowstorm.
The woman broke down when the police told her
break down get upset
that her son had died.
Our teacher broke the final project down into three
break sthg down divide into smaller parts
separate parts.
break in force entry to a building Somebody broke in last night and stole our stereo.
The firemen had to break into the room to rescue
break into sthg enter forcibly
the children.
wear sthg a few times so
I need to break these shoes in before we run next
break sthg in that it doesn't look/feel
week.
new
The TV station broke in to report the news of the
break in interrupt
president's death.
My best friend and I broke up before I moved to
break up end a relationship
UAE.
The kids just broke up as soon as the clown started
break up start laughing (informal)
talking.
The prisoners broke out of jail when the guards
break out escape
weren't looking.
break out in
develop a skin condition I broke out in a rash after our camping trip.
sthg
bring sby down make unhappy This sad music is bringing me down.
My grandparents brought me up after my parents
bring sby up raise a child
died.
start talking about a My mother walks out of the room when my father
bring sthg up
subject brings up sports.
He drank so much that he brought his dinner up in
bring sthg up vomit
the toilet.
phone many different We called around but we weren't able to find the
call around
places/people car part we needed.
I called the company back but the offices were
call sby back return a phone call
closed for the weekend.
Jason called the wedding of because he wasn't in
call sthg of cancel
love with his fianc.
ask for an answer or
call on sby The professor called on me for question 1.
opinion
call on sby visit sby We called on you last night but you weren't home.
Give me your phone number and I will call you up
call sby up phone
when we are in town.
Phrasal verb Meaning Example sentence
You are still mad. You need to calm down before
calm down relax after being angry
you drive the car.
not care for sby/
not like (formal) I don't care for his behaviour.
sthg
get to the same point as You'll have to run faster than that if you want to
catch up
sby else catch up with Marty.
arrive and register at a
check in We will get the hotel keys when we check in.
hotel or airport
check out leave a hotel You have to check out of the hotel before 11:00 AM.
check sby/ sthg look at carefully,
The company checks out all new employees.
out investigate
check out sby/
look at (informal) Check out the crazy hair on that guy!
sthg
cheer up become happier She cheered up when she heard the good news.
cheer sby up make happier I brought you some flowers to cheer you up.
If everyone chips in we can get the kitchen painted
chip in help
by noon.
Please clean up your bedroom before you go
clean sthg up tidy, clean
outside.
come across I came across these old photos when I was tidying
find unexpectedly
sthg the closet.
The top and bottom come apart if you pull hard
come apart separate
enough.
come down My nephew came down with chicken pox this
become sick
with sthg weekend.
volunteer for a task or to The woman came forward with her husband's
come forward
give evidence finger prints.
come from some
originate in The art of origami comes from Asia.
place
count on sby/ I am counting on you to make dinner while I am
rely on
sthg out.
Please cross out your old address and write your
cross sthg out draw a line through
new one.
cut back on My doctor wants me to cut back on sweets and
consume less
sthg fatty foods.
make sthg fall to the We had to cut the old tree in our yard down after
cut sthg down
ground the storm.
Your father cut in while I was dancing with your
cut in interrupt
uncle.
pull in too closely in front
cut in The bus driver got angry when that car cut in.
of another vehicle
start operating (of an
The air conditioner cuts in when the temperature
cut in engine or electrical
gets to 22C.
device)
The doctors cut of his leg because it was severely
cut sthg of remove with sthg sharp
injured.
The phone company cut of our phone because we
cut sthg of stop providing
didn't pay the bill.
My grandparents cut my father of when he
cut sby of take out of a will
remarried.
remove part of sthg
cut sthg out (usually with scissors and I cut this ad out of the newspaper.
paper)
do sby/ sthg He's lucky to be alive. His shop was done over by a
beat up, ransack
over street gang.
do sthg over do again (AmE) My teacher wants me to do my essay over because
Phrasal verb Meaning Example sentence
she doesn't like my topic.
do away with It's time to do away with all of these old tax
discard
sthg records.
do sthg up fasten, close Do your coat up before you go outside. It's snowing!
dress up wear nice clothing It's a fancy restaurant so we have to dress up.
move back in a Andrea dropped back to third place when she fell
drop back
position/group off her bike.
drop in/ by/ come without an I might drop in/by/over for tea sometime this
over appointment week.
drop sby/ sthg take sby/ sthg somewhere I have to drop my sister of at work before I come
of and leave them/it there over.
I dropped out of Science because it was too
drop out quit a class, school etc
difficult.
eat out eat at a restaurant I don't feel like cooking tonight. Let's eat out.
eventually We ended up renting a movie instead of going to
end up
reach/do/decide the theatre.
fall apart break into pieces My new dress fell apart in the washing machine.
The picture that you hung up last night fell down
fall down fall to the ground
this morning.
fall out separate from an interior The money must have fallen out of my pocket.
(of hair, teeth) become
fall out His hair started to fall out when he was only 35.
loose and unattached
understand, find the I need to figure out how to fit the piano and the
figure sthg out
answer bookshelf in this room.
to write information in Please fill in the form with your name, address, and
fill sthg in
blanks, as on a form (BrE) phone number.
to write information in
fill sthg out blanks, as on a form The form must be filled out in capital letters.
(AmE)
fill sthg up fill to the top I always fill the water jug up when it is empty.
We don't know where he lives. How can we find
find out discover
out?
We tried to keep the time of the party a secret, but
find sthg out discover
Samantha found it out.
get sthg across/ communicate, make I tried to get my point across/over to the judge but
over understandable she wouldn't listen.
I was surprised how well my wife and my sister got
get along/on like each other
along/on.
My grandfather can get around fine in his new
get around have mobility
wheelchair.
We worked so hard this year that we had to get
get away go on a vacation
away for a week.
get away with do without being noticed Jason always gets away with cheating in his maths
sthg or punished tests.
get back return We got back from our vacation last week.
receive sthg you had Liz finally got her Science notes back from my
get sthg back
before room-mate.
My sister got back at me for stealing her shoes.
get back at sby retaliate, take revenge
She stole my favourite hat.
get back into become interested in sthg
I finally got back into my novel and finished it.
sthg again
We're going to freeze out here if you don't let us get
get on sthg step onto a vehicle
on the bus.
recover from an illness,
get over sthg I just got over the flu and now my sister has it.
loss, difficulty
Phrasal verb Meaning Example sentence
The company will have to close if it can't get over
get over sthg overcome a problem
the new regulations.
finally find time to do
get round to I don't know when I am going to get round to
(AmE: get around to
sthg writing the thank you cards.
sthg)
meet (usually for social
get together Let's get together for a BBQ this weekend.
reasons)
You should get up and give the elderly man your
get up stand
seat.
reveal hidden information
give sby away His wife gave him away to the police.
about sby
My little sister gave the surprise party away by
give sthg away ruin a secret
accident.
give sthg away give sthg to sby for free The library was giving away old books on Friday.
I have to give these skates back to Franz before his
give sthg back return a borrowed item
hockey game.
reluctantly stop fighting My boyfriend didn't want to go to the ballet, but he
give in
or arguing finally gave in.
give to many people They were giving out free perfume samples at the
give sthg out
(usually at no cost) department store.
give sthg up quit a habit I am giving up smoking as of January 1st.
give up stop trying My maths homework was too difficult so I gave up.
go after sby follow sby My brother tried to go after the thief in his car.
I went after my dream and now I am a published
go after sthg try to achieve sthg
writer.
We are going against the best soccer team in the
go against sby compete, oppose
city tonight.
go ahead start, proceed Please go ahead and eat before the food gets cold.
go back return to a place I have to go back home and get my lunch.
leave home to go on a
go out We're going out for dinner tonight.
social event
Please go over your answers before you submit
go over sthg review
your test.
I haven't seen Tina for a long time. I think I'll go
go over visit sby nearby
over for an hour or two.
go without sthg suffer lack or deprivation When I was young, we went without winter boots.
stop being friends over My best friend and I grew apart after she changed
grow apart
time schools.
This bike is too big for him now, but he should grow
grow into sthg grow big enough to fit
into it by next year.
grow out of She needs a new pair of shoes because she has
get too big for
sthg grown out of her old ones.
grow up become an adult When Jack grows up he wants to be a fireman.
I handed my old comic books down to my little
hand sthg down give sthg used to sby else
cousin.
hand sthg in submit I have to hand in my essay by Friday.
to distribute to a group of
hand sthg out We will hand out the invitations at the door.
people
The police asked the man to hand over his wallet
hand sthg over give (usually unwillingly)
and his weapons.
hang in stay positive (informal) Hang in there. I'm sure you'll find a job very soon.
wait a short time
hang on Hang on while I grab my coat and shoes!
(informal)
spend time relaxing Instead of going to the party we are just going to
hang out
(informal) hang out at my place.
Phrasal verb Meaning Example sentence
hang up end a phone call He didn't say goodbye before he hung up.
hold sby/ sthg I had to hold my dog back because there was a cat
prevent from doing/going
back in the park.
Jamie held back his tears at his grandfather's
hold sthg back hide an emotion
funeral.
Please hold on while I transfer you to the Sales
hold on wait a short time
Department.
hold onto sby/ hold firmly using your
Hold onto your hat because it's very windy outside.
sthg hands or arms
A man in a black mask held the bank up this
hold sby/ sthgup rob
morning.
keep on doing
continue doing Keep on stirring until the liquid comes to a boil.
sthg
keep sthg from We kept our relationship from our parents for two
not tell
sby years.
keep sby/ sthg
stop from entering Try to keep the wet dog out of the living room.
out
If you keep those results up you will get into a great
keep sthg up continue at the same rate
college.
fail to support or help, I need you to be on time. Don't let me down this
let sby down
disappoint time.
let sby in allow to enter Can you let the cat in before you go to school?
sign in (to a website, I can't log in to Facebook because I've forgotten my
log in (or on)
database etc) password.
sign out (of a website, If you don't log of somebody could get into your
log out (or of)
database etc) account.
look after sby/
take care of I have to look after my sick grandmother.
sthg
look down on think less of, consider Ever since I told lie my dad has looked down on
sby inferior me.
look for sby/
try to find I'm looking for a red dress for the wedding.
sthg
look forward to be excited about the
I'm looking forward to the Christmas break.
sthg future
We are going to look into the price of snowboards
look into sthg investigate
today.
be careful, vigilant, and
look out Look out! That car's going to hit you!
take notice
look out for sby/ Don't forget to look out for snakes on the hiking
be especially vigilant for
sthg trail.
look sthg over check, examine Can you look over my essay for spelling mistakes?
search and find
look sthg up information in a reference We can look her phone number up on the Internet.
book or database
look up to sby have a lot of respect for My little sister has always looked up to me.
make sthg up invent, lie about sthg Josie made up a story about why we were late.
We were angry last night, but we made up at
make up forgive each other
breakfast.
make sby up apply cosmetics to My sisters made me up for my graduation party.
confuse two or more
mix sthg up I mixed up the twins' names again!
things
His uncle passed away last night after a long
pass away die
illness.
It was so hot in the church that an elderly lady
pass out faint
passed out.
pass sthg out give the same thing to The professor passed the textbooks out before
Phrasal verb Meaning Example sentence
many people class.
decline (usually sthg
pass sthg up I passed up the job because I am afraid of change.
good)
Thanks for buying my ticket. I'll pay you back on
pay sby back return owed money
Friday.
be punished for doing That bully will pay for being mean to my little
pay for sthg
sthg bad brother.
pick sthg out choose I picked out three sweaters for you to try on.
point sby/ sthg
indicate with your finger I'll point my boyfriend out when he runs by.
out
put what you are holding You can put the groceries down on the kitchen
put sthg down
on a surface or floor counter.
insult, make sby feel The students put the substitute teacher down
put sby down
stupid because his pants were too short.
We are putting of our trip until January because of
put sthg of postpone
the hurricane.
The neighbours put the fire out before the firemen
put sthg out extinguish
arrived.
put sthg I have to put the crib together before the baby
assemble
together arrives.
put up with sby/ I don't think I can put up with three small children
tolerate
sthg in the car.
put clothing/ accessories Don't forget to put on your new earrings for the
put sthg on
on your body party.
run into sby/
meet unexpectedly I ran into an old school-friend at the mall.
sthg
run over sby/ drive a vehicle over a
I accidentally ran over your bicycle in the driveway.
sthg person or thing
run over/ Let's run over/through these lines one more time
rehearse, review
through sthg before the show.
leave unexpectedly, The child ran away from home and has been
run away
escape missing for three days.
We ran out of shampoo so I had to wash my hair
run out have none left
with soap.
My letter got sent back to me because I used the
send sthg back return (usually by mail)
wrong stamp.
Our boss set a meeting up with the president of the
set sthg up arrange, organize
company.
The police set up the car thief by using a hidden
set sby up trick, trap
camera.
I want to shop around a little before I decide on
shop around compare prices
these boots.
act extra special for
show of people watching (usually He always shows of on his skateboard
boastfully)
stay somewhere for the You should sleep over tonight if the weather is too
sleep over
night bad to drive home.
organize, resolve a We need to sort the bills out before the first of the
sort sthg out
problem month.
continue doing sthg, limit
stick to sthg yourself to one particular You will lose weight if you stick to the diet.
thing
stop the energy flow, turn
switch sthg of The light's too bright. Could you switch it of.
off
start the energy flow, turn We heard the news as soon as we switched on the
switch sthg on
on car radio.
Phrasal verb Meaning Example sentence
resemble a family
take after sby I take after my mother. We are both impatient.
member
purposely break into He took the car brakes apart and found the
take sthg apart
pieces problem.
I have to take our new TV back because it doesn't
take sthg back return an item
work.
take of start to fly My plane takes of in five minutes.
remove sthg (usually
take sthg of Take of your socks and shoes and come in the lake!
clothing)
remove from a place or
take sthg out Can you take the garbage out to the street for me?
thing
pay for sby to go My grandparents took us out for dinner and a
take sby out
somewhere with you movie.
I tore up my friend's letters and gave them back to
tear sthg up rip into pieces
him.
remember (often + to, When I think back on my youth, I wish I had studied
think back
sometimes + on) harder.
I'll have to think this job offer over before I make
think sthg over consider
my final decision.
We threw our old furniture away when we won the
throw sthg away dispose of
lottery.
decrease the volume or
turn sthg down Please turn the TV down while the guests are here.
strength (heat, light etc)
I turned the job down because I don't want to
turn sthg down refuse
move.
stop the energy flow, Your mother wants you to turn the TV of and come
turn sthg of
switch off for dinner.
start the energy, switch
turn sthg on It's too dark in here. Let's turn some lights on.
on
increase the volume or Can you turn the music up? This is my favourite
turn sthg up
strength (heat, light etc) song.
Our cat turned up after we put posters up all over
turn up appear suddenly
the neighbourhood.
I'm going to try these jeans on, but I don't think
try sthg on sample clothing
they will fit.
try sthg out test I am going to try this new brand of detergent out.
The kids used up the whole toothpaste so we need
use sthg up finish the supply
to buy some more.
wake up stop sleeping We have to wake up early for work on Monday.
warm sby/ sthg
increase the temperature You can warm your feet up in front of the fireplace.
up
I always warm up by doing sit-ups before I go for a
warm up prepare body for exercise
run.
Most of my make-up wore of before I got to the
wear of fade away
party.
work out exercise I work out at the gym three times a week.
work out be successful Our plan worked out fine.
We have to work out the total cost before we buy
work sthg out make a calculation
the house.