PHRASAL

VERB
MEANING EXAMPLES

Act up Pout Stop acting up, and do your homework.
Account for To explain sy with sg You must account for your deeds.
Add up Make sense Her eidence !ust doesn"t add up.
A
Allow for Take sg into account #f you go hiking, allow for the $ad weather.
Ask after #n%uire a$out &im was asking after you

Ask for Ask to speak to, call 'o to the office and ask for my seceretary
Ask in #nite sy to enter She didn"t ask me in, so # got wet outside.
Ask out #nite sy to go out (inally, Peter asked &ane out.
)ack away To step or moe $ack
slowly
*hen he took the gun out eery$ody started to
$ack away.
)
)ack down Yield in an argument Sheila was right, so Paul had to $ack down.
)ack up To support The principal was neer $acked up $y his staff.
)argain for Take into account *e hadn"t $argained for there $eing so much
traffic, and we missed the plane.

)ear out +onfirm the truth Helen"s ali$i was $orne out $y her sister.

)ear up To surie , to get oer the
difficulty
The news of her death was a huge shock for him
$ut he $ore up $raely $y now.
)e for )e in faor of #"m for drinking coke.
)e in for To $e a$out to meet )ased on the forcast, we"re in for a huge storm.
)e oer )e finished #"m oer with you. , The storm is oer now.
)e up to )e strong enough to do sg.
-epend on sy,sg
As she was ery ill, she was no longer up to her
work.
*hat"ll we $e doing tonight. /h, it"s up to you.
)reak down 0ose control of the
emotions
-aid $roke down and wept when he heard the
news.

)reak down 1se fractions
2mathematics3
+an you $reak down these num$er.
)reak down Stop the negotiations )ecause neither side compromised the
discussion $roke down.
)reak off Stop talking, terminate He $roke off to answer the phone

)reak off To come loose The handles of the door $roke off.
)reak up +ome to an end, finish a
loe relationship
The party finally $roke up at 4.55am.

)ring a$out +ause to happen The crisis was $rought a$out $y )renda"s

resignation
)ring off Succeed in doing
something
The team tried for years to win the competition
and they finally $rought it off.

)ring on +ause the onset of an
illness
Sitting in the damp $rought on his rheumatism.

)ring on,upon +ause trou$le to happen to
oneself
You hae $rought this on,upon yourself6

)ring around #nfluence someone to your
point of iew
After much discussion, # $rought the committee
round to my point of iew.

)ring around To come to consciousness He hadand accident and he was only $rought
around in the hospital.
)ring up Mention # feel # ought to $ring up another small matter.

)ring up To puke, to omit, to throw
up
He drank so much that he $rought the dinner up.
+all up Mo$ili7e for military
serice
Mark was called up when the war $roke up.
+
+all off To postpone The party was called off $acuse &im got sick.
+all for To ask for 2esp. some help3 He fainted to the ground so we called for the
am$ulance.
+all in To recruit 2for the army3 He was called in when the war started.
+all on To isit *e"ll call on you tonight if you"re home.
+all out To ask sy to leae the place The police called the terrorists out of the house.
+arry off +omplete successfully 8
perhaps despite a pro$lem
&ane had a difficult role to play, $ut she carried
it off.

+arry out +omplete a plan The attack was successfully carried out

+atch on )ecome popular 8
colloquial
This new hairstyle is $eginning to catch on.

+atch up with To keep pace with sg,sy # couldn"t catch up with her, she talked so fast.
+lear off ,away To disperse 2eg clouds3 After the storm the clouds cleared away.
+lose down To shut permanently The store near$y closed down.
+lose up To go closer The car closed up and nearly hit us.
+ome a$out Happen 0et me explain how the situation came a$out.

+ome around To restore consciousness
2see. 9: )ring around3
+ome down to )e in the end, a matter of #t all comes down to whether you are prepared
to accept less money.

+ome in for ;eceie 8 especially
criticism, $lame
The goernment has come in for a lot of
criticism oer the decision.

+ome off Take place successfully #"m afraid that deal didn"t come off after all.

+ome out Appear All the flowers hae come out.
*hen the news came out, eeryone was
shocked.
My photos didn"t come out ery well.

+ome up /ccur 8 usually a pro$lem
8 colloquial
0ook, something has come up, and # can"t meet
you.

+ome up against Meet a difficulty *e"e come up against a $it of pro$lems.

+ome up to <%ual 8 especially
expectations, standard
The play didn"t come up to expectations.

+ome up with Think of 8 especially an
answer, a plan, a solution
*e still haen"t come up with a solution to the
pro$lem.

+ount on ;ely on -on"t worry, you can count on me.

+rop up Happen unexpectedly -
colloquial
# can"t come to your party, something has
cropped up.

-o away with A$olish 9 colloquial -og licenses hae $een done away with.
-
-o away with Murder 9 colloquial *hat if they do away with the old man.

-o up -ecorate 9 colloquial *e are haing our liing room done up.

-raw up +ome to a stop A white sports car drew up outside the door.

-raw up /rganise 8 especially a
document
The contract is $eing drawn up at the moment.

-rop in Pay a isit 9 colloquial -rop in any time you"re passing.

-rop off (all asleep 9 colloquial The $a$y has !ust dropped off.

<nd up (inish in a certain way, or
place
*e ended up staying there for lunch.
The car ended up in a ditch.
<
(ace up to Hae courage to deal with
8 especially responsi$ilities
You hae to face up to your responsi$ilities.
(
(all a$out Show amusement 8
especially laughing 9
colloquial
<eryone fell a$out when &ane told her !oke.

(all $ack on 1se as a last resort #f the worst comes to the worst, we"e got our
saings to fall $ack on.

(all for )e deceied $y 9
colloquial
#t was an unlikely story $ut he fell for it.


(all for (all in loe 9 colloquial # fell for you the moment # saw you.

(all out with =uarrel with Peter has fallen out with his $oss.

(all through (ail to come to completion The plan fell through at the last minute.

(eel up to (eel capa$le of doing /ld Mr Smith didn"t feel up to walking all that
way.

(ollow up Act upon a suggestion Thanks for the information a$out that $ook. #"ll
follow it up.

(ollow up Take more action *e"ll follow up this lesson next week.

'et across )e understood 8 especially
get an idea across
# had the feeling # wasn"t getting across.
'
'et at #mply 8 a$out personal
matters 8 colloquial
*hat are you getting at exactly.

'et down Make to feel depressed 9
colloquial
This cold weather really gets me down.

'et down to )egin to seriously deal
with
#t"s time we got down to some real work.

'et off with Aoid punishment They were lucky to get off with such light
sentences.

'et on for Approach a certain
age,time,num$er
He must $e getting on for seenty.

'et on Make progress 8 especially
in life
Sue is getting on ery well in her new !o$.

'et oer )e surprised # couldn"t get oer how well she looked.

'et oer with +ome to the end of
something, usually
unpleasant
#"ll $e glad to get this awful $usiness oer with.

'et round to (ill time to do 8 also
around
Sorry, $ut # haen"t got round to fixing the tap
yet.

'et up to -o something 8 usually
$ad when a$out children 9
colloquial
The children are getting up to something in the
garden.
*hat hae you $een getting up to lately.

'ie away )etray His false identity papers gae him away.

'ie off Send of a smell 8 li%uid or
gas
The cheese had $egun to gie off a strange
smell.

'ie out )e exhausted *hen our money gae out we had to $orrow.

'ie oer A$andon, deote The rest of the time was gien oer to playing
cards.

'ie oer Stop 9 colloquial *hy don"t you gie oer6 You"re getting on my
neres6

'ie up Surrender The escaped prisoner gae herself up.

'ie up )elieed to $e dead or lost After ten days the ship was gien up for lost.

'o $ack on )reak a promise The management has gone $ack on its promise.

'o in for Make a ha$it of # don"t go in for that kind of thing.

'o in for <nter a competition Are you thinking of going in for the race.

'o off )ecome $ad 9 food This milk has gone off.

'o on Happen 8 usually negatie Something funny is going on.

'o round )e enough There weren"t enough life !ackets to go round.

'o through with +omplete a promise or plan
8 usually unwillingly
*hen it came to actually stealing the money,
>ora couldn"t go through with us.

'row on )ecome more liked 9
colloquial
This new record is growing on me.

Hang onto ?eep 9 colloquial # think we should hang onto the car until next
year.
H
Hae it in for )e deli$erately unkind to
someone 8 also as hae got
My teacher has 2got3 it in for me.

Hae it out with <xpress feelings so as to
settle a pro$lem
# put up with the pro$lem for a while $ut in the
end # had it out with hers.

Hae someone
on
-eceie 8 colloquial # don"t $eliee you. You"re haing me on.

Hit it off 'et on well with 9
colloquial
Mark and Sarah really hit it off at the party.

Hit upon,on -iscoer $y chance 8 often
an idea
They hit upon the solution %uite $y chance.

Hold out /ffer 8 especially with
hope
*e don"t hold out much hope that the price will
fall.

Hold up -elay Sorry #"m late, # was held up in the traffic

Hold up 1se as an example9i.e. A
model of good $ehaiour
&ohn was always held up as an example to me.

Hold with Agree with 8 an idea # don"t hold with the idea of using force.

?eep up +ontinue *ell done6 ?eep up the good work6
?
0ay down State a rule9especially lay
down the law
The company has laid down strict procedures
for this kind of situation.
0
0et down -isappoint, $reak a
promise.
Sorry to let you down, $ut # can"t gie you a lift
today.

0et it on Allow $eing part of a
secret
*e haen"t let Tina in on the plans yet.

0et off <xcuse from punishment As -ae was young, the !udge let him off with a
fine.

0et on #nform a$out a secret 9
colloquial
*e"re planning a surprise for Helen, $ut don"t
let on.

2not3 0ie down Suffer a loss of reputation #f +ity lose, they"ll neer lie it down.

0ie up to ;each an expected The play %uite lied up to my expectations.

standard
0ook into #nestigate The police hae promised to look into the
pro$lem.

0ook on +onsider *e look on this town as our real home.

0ook someone
up
@isit when in the area #f you"re passing through Athens, look me up.

Make for ;esult in The power steering makes for easier parking.
M
Make off with ;un away with The thief made off with a alua$le necklace.

Make out Pretend Tim made out that that he hadn"t seen the >o
Smoking sign.

Make out Manage to see or
understand
# couldn"t %uite make out what the notice said.

Make someone
out
1nderstand someone"s
$ehaiour
&anet is really odd. # can"t make her out.

Make up #nent # think you made up the whole story6

Make up for +ompensate for /ur success makes up for all the hard times.

Miss out (ail to include You hae missed out a word here.

Miss out 0ose a chance 9 colloquial (ie people got promoted, $ut # missed out
again.

/wn up +onfess 9 colloquial >one of the children would own up to $reaking
the window.
/
Pack in Stop an actiity 9
colloquial
&ohn has packed in his !o$.
P
Pay $ack Take reenge 9 colloquial She paid him $ack for all his insults.

Pick up #mproe 9 colloquial The weather seems to $e picking up.

Pin someone
down
(orce to gie a clear
statement
# asked &im to name a suita$le day, $ut #
couldn"t pin him down.

Play up )ehae or work $adly The car is playing up again. #t won"t start.

Point out -raw attention to a fact # pointed out that # would $e on holiday anyway.

Put off Manage to succeed #t was a tricky plan, $ut we pulled it off.

Push on +ontinue with some effort 9
colloquial
0et"s push on and try to reach the coast $y
tonight.

Put across +ommunicate ideas Harry is cleer $ut he can"t put his ideas across.

Put down to <xplain the cause of -iane"s poor performance was put down to
neres.

Put in for Apply for a !o$ Sue has put in for a teaching !o$.

Put oneself out Take trou$le 8 to help
someone
Please don"t put yourself out making a meal. A
sandwich will do.

Put off -iscourage 9 upset The crowd put the gymnast off, and he fell.

Put up /ffer accommodation *e can put you up for a few days.

Put up with Tolerate 9 $ear # can"t put up with all this noise6

;ip off +harge too much 9
colloquial
You paid AB5. They really ripped you off6
;
;un down +ritici7e She"s always running down her hus$and.

;un down 0ose power 9 allow to
decline
# think the $atteries are running down.

;un into Meet 'uess who # run into at the supermarket6

;un to Hae enough money # don"t think we can run to a holiday a$road this
year.

;un oer +heck 8 also run through 0et"s run oer the plan once more.

;un up A $ill 8 let a $ill get longer
without paying
# ran up a huge telephone $ill at the hotel.

;un up against <ncounter 8 usually a
pro$lem
*e"e run up against a slight pro$lem.

See someone off 'o to station, airport, etc to
say good$ye to someone
# went to the station to see them off.
S
See through ;ealise the truth a$out # saw through his intentions at once.

Send up Make fun of $y imitating &ean is always sending up the (rench teacher.

Set a$out Start working *e must set a$out re9organising the office.

Set in <sta$lish itself 8 especially
weather
# think this rain has set in for the day.

Set out 'ie in detail in writing This document sets out all the 1nion demands.

Set out Arrange #"e set out the refreshments in the hall.

Set out Start an action Sue set out to write a $iography $ut it $ecame a
noel.

Set up <sta$lish An in%uiry into the accident has $een set up.

Set 2up3on Attack *e were set upon $y a gang of hooligans.

Sink in ;ealise slowly 8 colloquial
intransitive
Slowly the realisation that # had won $egan to
sink in.

Slip up Make a mistake 9
colloquial
Someone slipped up and my application was
lost.

Sort out (ind a solution 9 colloquial -on"t worry, Mary will sort out your pro$lem.

Stand $y ?eep to an agreement The company agreed to stand $y its original
commitment.

Stand for ;epresent 8 initials <.g. stands for exempli gratia, it"s 0atin.

Stand for Tolerate # will not stand for this kind of $ehaiour in my

house6
Stand in for Take the place of +arol has kindly agreed to stand in for 'raham
at the monthly meeting.

Stand up to ;esist 8 $ear stress The engine won"t stand up to the strain.

Step down ;esign 8 colloquial The +hairman has stepped down after criticism
from shareholders.

Step up #ncrease Production at the 0eeds plant has $een stepped
up.

Stick up for -efend 8 especially
yourself, your rights 9
colloquial
You must learn to stick up for yourself.

Take in -eceie -on"t $e taken in $y her apparent shyness.
T
Take 2it3 out on Make someone else suffer
$ecause of one"s own
sufferings
# know you are unhappy, $ut don"t take it out on
me6
Take off #mitate 8 colloquial -ae takes off the Prime Minister really well.

Take on Ac%uire a new
characteristic
My grandmother has taken on a new lease of life
since her operation.

Take on -o something extra She has taken on too much with a full9time !o$
as well.

Take out #nsurance 8 sign an
insurance agreement
Ann has taken out life insurance.

Take oer 'ain control of The army tried to take oer the country.

Take to
someone
-eelop a liking for You"ll soon take to your new $oss, #"m sure.

Take up Time 8 occupy time The meeting took up a whole morning.

Talk out of or
into
-issuade from 9 persuade
into
Paul talked me into going skiing, against my
$etter !udgement.

Tell off Scold 8 colloquial /ur teacher told us off for $eing late.

Tie in with )e in agreement with #"m afraid your party doesn"t %uite tie in with
our arrangements

Track down Trace the wherea$outs of The police tracked down the killer and arrested
him.

Try out Test 8 a machine 0et"s try out the new washing machine.

Turn down ;e!ect an offer Another company offered me a !o$ $ut # turned
them down.

Turn out Happen to $e in the end He turned out to $e an old friend of Helen"s.

Turn out +ome to a meeting or to
form a crowd
Thousands of fans turned out to welcome the
team.

Turn up )e discoered $y chance -on"t worry a$out that missing $ook, it"s $ound
to turn up sooner or later.

Turn up Arrie 8 often
unexpectedly
>ot many people turned up for the lessons.

*ear off 0ose effect 8 especially a
drug
These painkillers wear off after a$out two hours.
*
*ork out +alculate 8 also work out
at for specific amounts
The hotel $ill worked out at oer AB55.