This document contains definitions and examples of common English phrasal verbs. It lists over 40 entries with the phrasal verb, its meaning, and an example sentence using that phrasal verb. Some of the phrasal verbs included are ask somebody out, break down, bring something up, call somebody back, check out, and cut back on something.
This document contains definitions and examples of common English phrasal verbs. It lists over 40 entries with the phrasal verb, its meaning, and an example sentence using that phrasal verb. Some of the phrasal verbs included are ask somebody out, break down, bring something up, call somebody back, check out, and cut back on something.
This document contains definitions and examples of common English phrasal verbs. It lists over 40 entries with the phrasal verb, its meaning, and an example sentence using that phrasal verb. Some of the phrasal verbs included are ask somebody out, break down, bring something up, call somebody back, check out, and cut back on something.
ask somebody out invite on a Brian asked Judy out to
date dinner and a movie. ask around ask many I asked around but nobody people the has seen my wallet. same question add up to something equal Your purchases add up to $205.32. back something up reverse You'll have to back up your car so that I can get out. back somebody up support My wife backed me up over my decision to quit my job. blow up explode The racing car blew up after it crashed into the fence. blow something up add air We have to blow 50 balloons up for the party. break down stop Our car broke down at the functioning side of the highway in the (vehicle, snowstorm. machine) break down get upset The woman broke down when the police told her that her son had died. break something down divide into Our teacher broke the final smaller parts project down into three separate parts. break in force entry to Somebody broke in last night a building and stole our stereo. break into something enter forcibly The firemen had to break into the room to rescue the children. phrasal verb meaning example sentence break something in wear I need to break these something a shoes in before we run next few times so week. that it doesn't look/feel new break in interrupt The TV station broke in to report the news of the president's death. break up end a My boyfriend and I broke relationship up before I moved to America. break up start laughing The kids just broke up as (informal) soon as the clown started talking. break out escape The prisoners broke out of jail when the guards weren't looking. break out in something develop a I broke out in a rash after our skin condition camping trip. bring somebody down make This sad music unhappy is bringing me down. bring somebody up raise a child My grandparents brought me up after my parents died. bring something up start talking My mother walks out of the about a room when my father brings subject up sports. bring something up vomit He drank so much that he brought his dinner up in the toilet. call around phone many We called around but we different weren't able to find the car phrasal verb meaning example sentence places/peopl part we needed. e call somebody back return a I called the phone call company back but the offices were closed for the weekend. call something off cancel Jason called the wedding off because he wasn't in love with his fiancé. call on somebody ask for an The professor called on me answer or for question 1. opinion call on somebody visit We called on you last night somebody but you weren't home. call somebody up phone Give me your phone number and I will call you up when we are in town. calm down relax after You are still mad. You need being angry to calm down before you drive the car. not care for somebody/ not like I don't care for his behaviour. something (formal) catch up get to the You'll have to run faster than same point that if you want to catch as somebody up with Marty. else check in arrive and We will get the hotel keys register at a 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 somebody/ look at The company checks out all phrasal verb meaning example sentence something out carefully, new employees. investigate check out somebody/ look at Check out the crazy hair on something (informal) that guy! cheer up become She cheered up when she happier heard the good news. cheer somebody up make happier I brought you some flowers to cheer you up. chip in help If everyone chips in we can get the kitchen painted by noon. clean something up tidy, clean Please clean up your bedroom before you go outside. come across something find I came across these old unexpectedly photos when I was tidying the closet. come apart separate The top and bottom come apart if you pull hard enough. come down become sick My nephew came down with something with chicken pox this weekend. come forward volunteer for The woman came a task or to forward with her husband's give evidence finger prints. come from some place originate in The art of origami comes from Asia. count on somebody/ rely on I am counting on you to something make dinner while I am out. cross something out draw a line Please cross out your old through address and write your new phrasal verb meaning example sentence one. cut back on something consume less My doctor wants me to cut back on sweets and fatty foods. cut something down make We had to cut the old tree in something our yard down after the fall to the storm. ground cut in interrupt Your father cut in while I was dancing with your uncle. cut in pull in too The bus driver got angry closely in when that car cut in. front of another vehicle cut in start The air conditioner cuts operating (of in when the temperature gets an engine or to 22°C. electrical device) cut something off remove with The doctors cut off his leg something because it was severely sharp injured. cut something off stop The phone company cut providing off our phone because we didn't pay the bill. cut somebody off take out of a My grandparents cut my will father off when he remarried. cut something out remove part I cut this ad out of the of something newspaper. (usually with scissors and paper) phrasal verb meaning example sentence do somebody/ beat up, He's lucky to be alive. His something over ransack (BrE, shop was done over by a informal) street gang. do something over do again My teacher wants me (AmE) to do my essay over because she doesn't like my topic. do away with something discard It's time to do away with all of these old tax records. do something up fasten, close Do your coat up before you go outside. It's snowing! dress up wear nice It's a fancy restaurant so we clothing have to dress up. drop back move back in Andrea dropped back to a third place when she fell off position/grou her bike. p drop in/ by/ over come without I might drop in/by/over for an tea sometime this week. appointment drop somebody/ take I have to drop my sister off at something off somebody/ work before I come over. something somewhere and leave them/it there drop out quit a class, I dropped out of Science school etc because it was too difficult. eat out eat at a I don't feel like cooking restaurant tonight. Let's eat out. end up eventually We ended up renting a movie reach/do/deci instead of going to the de theatre. phrasal verb meaning example sentence fall apart break into My new dress fell apart in the pieces washing machine. fall down fall to the The picture that you hung up ground last night fell down this morning. fall out separate The money must have fallen from an out of my pocket. interior fall out (of hair, His hair started to fall teeth) out when he was only 35. become loose and unattached figure something out understand, I need to figure out how to fit find the the piano and the bookshelf in answer this room. fill something in to write Please fill in the form with information in your name, address, and blanks, as on phone number. a form (BrE) fill something out to write The form must be filled out in information in capital letters. blanks, as on a form (AmE) fill something up fill to the top I always fill the water jug up when it is empty. find out discover We don't know where he lives. How can we find out? find something out discover We tried to keep the time of the party a secret, but Samantha found it out. get something across/ over communicate I tried to get my phrasal verb meaning example sentence , make point across/over to the understandab judge but she wouldn't listen. le get along/on like each I was surprised how well my other new girlfriend and my sister got along/on. get around have mobility My grandfather can get around fine in his new wheelchair. get away go on a We worked so hard this year vacation that we had to get away for a week. get away with something do without Jason always gets away being noticed with cheating in his maths or punished tests. get back return We got back from our vacation last week. get something back receive Liz finally got her Science something notes back from my room- you had mate. before get back at somebody retaliate, take My sister got back at me for revenge stealing her shoes. She stole my favourite hat. get back into something become I finally got back into my interested in novel and finished it. something again get on something step onto a We're going to freeze out vehicle here if you don't let us get on the bus. get over something recover from I just got over the flu and phrasal verb meaning example sentence an illness, now my sister has it. loss, difficulty get over something overcome a The company will have to problem close if it can't get over the new regulations. get round to something finally find I don't know when I am going time to do to get round to writing the (AmE: get thank you cards. around to something ) get together meet (usually Let's get together for a BBQ for social this weekend. reasons) get up get out of bed I got up early today to study for my exam. get up stand You should get up and give the elderly man your seat. give somebody away reveal hidden His wife gave him away to information the police. about somebody give somebody away take the bride My father gave me away at to the altar my wedding. give something away ruin a secret My little sister gave the surprise party away by accident. give something away give The library was giving something to away old books on Friday. somebody for free give something back return a I have to give these phrasal verb meaning example sentence borrowed skates back to Franz before item his hockey game. give in reluctantly My boyfriend didn't want to go stop fighting to the ballet, but he or arguing finally gave in. give something out give to many They were giving out free people perfume samples at the (usually at no department store. cost) give something 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 somebody follow My brother tried to go somebody after the thief in his car. go after something try to achieve I went after my dream and something now I am a published writer. go against somebody compete, We are going against the oppose best soccer team in the city tonight. go ahead start, proceed Please go ahead and eat before the food gets cold. go back return to a I have to go back home and place get my lunch. go out leave home We're going out for dinner to go on a tonight. social event go out with somebody date Jesse has been going out with Luke since they met last winter. go over something review Please go over your answers phrasal verb meaning example sentence before you submit your test. go over visit I haven't seen Tina for a long somebody time. I think I'll go over for an nearby hour or two. go without something suffer lack or When I was young, we went deprivation without winter boots. grow apart stop being My best friend and I grew friends over apart after she changed time schools. grow back regrow My roses grew back this summer. grow into something grow big This bike is too big for him enough to fit now, but he should grow into it by next year. grow out of something get too big for Elizabeth needs a new pair of shoes because she has grown out of her old ones. grow up become an When Jack grows up he adult wants to be a fireman. hand something down give I handed my old comic something books down to my little used to cousin. somebody else hand something in submit I have to hand in my essay by Friday. hand something out to distribute We will hand out the to a group of invitations at the door. people hand something over give (usually The police asked the man unwillingly) to hand over his wallet and phrasal verb meaning example sentence his weapons. hang in stay positive Hang in there. I'm sure you'll (informal) find a job very soon. hang on wait a short Hang on while I grab my coat time and shoes! (informal) hang out spend time Instead of going to the party relaxing we are just going to hang (informal) out at my place. hang up end a phone He didn't say goodbye before call he hung up. hold somebody/ prevent from I had to hold my something back doing/going dog back because there was a cat in the park. hold something back hide an Jamie held back his tears at emotion his grandfather's funeral. hold on wait a short Please hold on while I time transfer you to the Sales Department. hold onto somebody/ hold firmly Hold onto your hat because something using your it's very windy outside. hands or arms hold somebody/ rob A man in a black something up mask held the bank up this morning. keep on doing something continue Keep on stirring until the doing liquid comes to a boil. keep something from some not tell We kept our body relationship from our parents for two years. phrasal verb meaning example sentence keep somebody/ stop from Try to keep the wet something out entering dog out of the living room. keep something up continue at If you keep those the same rate results up you will get into a great college. let somebody down fail to support I need you to be on time. or help, Don't let me down this time. disappoint let somebody in allow to enter Can you let the cat in before you go to school? log in (or on) sign in (to a I can't log in to Facebook website, because I've forgotten my database etc) password. log out (or off) sign out (of a If you don't log off somebody website, could get into your account. database etc) look after somebody/ take care of I have to look after my sick something grandmother. look down on somebody think less of, Ever since we stole that consider chocolate bar your dad inferior has looked down on me. look for somebody/ try to find I'm looking for a red dress something for the wedding. look forward to something be excited I'm looking forward to the about the Christmas break. future look into something investigate We are going to look into the price of snowboards today. look out be careful, Look out! That car's going to vigilant, and hit you! take notice phrasal verb meaning example sentence look out for somebody/ be especially Don't forget to look out something vigilant for for snakes on the hiking trail. look something over check, Can you look over my essay examine for spelling mistakes? look something up search and We can look her phone find number up on the Internet. information in a reference book or database look up to somebody have a lot of My little sister has respect for always looked up to me. make something up invent, lie Josie made up a story about about why we were late. something make up forgive each We were angry last night, but other we made up at breakfast. make somebody up apply My sisters made me up for cosmetics to my graduation party. mix something up confuse two I mixed up the twins' names or more again! things pass away die His uncle passed away last night after a long illness. pass out faint It was so hot in the church that an elderly lady passed out. pass something out give the The professor passed the same thing to textbooks out before class. many people pass something up decline I passed up the job because (usually I am afraid of change. phrasal verb meaning example sentence something good) pay somebody back return owed Thanks for buying my ticket. money I'll pay you back on Friday. pay for something be punished That bully will pay for being for doing mean to my little brother. something bad pick something out choose I picked out three sweaters for you to try on. point somebody/ indicate with I'll point my something out your finger boyfriend out when he runs by. put something down put what you You can put the are holding groceries down on the on a surface kitchen counter. or floor put somebody down insult, make The students put the somebody substitute feel stupid teacher down because his pants were too short. put something off postpone We are putting off our trip until January because of the hurricane. put something out extinguish The neighbours put the fire out before the firemen arrived. put something together assemble I have to put the crib together before the baby arrives. put up with somebody/ tolerate I don't think I can put up something with three small children in phrasal verb meaning example sentence the car. put something on put clothing/ Don't forget to put on your accessories new earrings for the party. on your body run into somebody/ meet I ran into an old school-friend something unexpectedly at the mall. run over somebody/ drive a I accidentally ran over your something vehicle over bicycle in the driveway. a person or thing run over/ rehearse, Let's run over/through these through something review lines one more time before the show. run away leave The child ran away from unexpectedly home and has been missing , escape for three days. run out have none We ran out of shampoo so I left had to wash my hair with soap. send something back return My letter got sent back to me (usually by because I used the wrong mail) stamp. set something up arrange, Our boss set a organize meeting up with the president of the company. set somebody up trick, trap The police set up the car thief by using a hidden camera. shop around compare I want to shop around a little prices before I decide on these boots. show off act extra He always shows off on his special for skateboard phrasal verb meaning example sentence people watching (usually boastfully) sleep over stay You should sleep somewhere over tonight if the weather is for the night too bad to drive home. (informal) sort something out organize, We need to sort the resolve a bills out before the first of the problem month. stick to something continue You will lose weight if doing you stick to the diet. something, limit yourself to one particular thing switch something off stop the The light's too bright. Could energy flow, you switch it off. turn off switch something on start the We heard the news as soon energy flow, as we switched on the car turn on radio. take after somebody resemble a I take after my mother. We family are both impatient. member take something apart purposely He took the car break into brakes apart and found the pieces problem. take something back return an I have to take our new item TV back because it doesn't work. phrasal verb meaning example sentence take off start to fly My plane takes off in five minutes. take something off remove Take off your socks and something shoes and come in the lake! (usually clothing) take something out remove from Can you take the a place or garbage out to the street for thing me? take somebody out pay for My somebody to grandparents took us out for go dinner and a movie. somewhere with you tear something up rip into I tore up my ex-boyfriend's pieces letters and gave them back to him. think back remember When I think back on my (often + to, youth, I wish I had studied sometimes + harder. on) think something over consider I'll have to think this job offer over before I make my final decision. throw something away dispose of We threw our old furniture away when we won the lottery. turn something down decrease the Please turn the volume or TV down while the guests are strength here. (heat, light etc) turn something down refuse I turned the phrasal verb meaning example sentence job down because I don't want to move. turn something off stop the Your mother wants you energy flow, to turn the TV off and come switch off for dinner. turn something on start the It's too dark in here. energy, Let's turn some lights on. switch on turn something up increase the Can you turn the music up? volume or This is my favourite song. strength (heat, light etc) turn up appear Our cat turned up after we suddenly put posters up all over the neighbourhood. try something on sample I'm going to try these clothing jeans on, but I don't think they will fit. try something out test I am going to try this new brand of detergent out. use something up finish the The kids used all of the supply toothpaste up so we need to buy some more. wake up stop sleeping We have to wake up early for work on Monday. warm somebody/ increase the You can warm your feet up in something up temperature front of the fireplace. warm up prepare body I always warm up by doing for exercise sit-ups before I go for a run. wear off fade away Most of my make-up wore off before I got to the party. phrasal verb meaning example sentence work out exercise I work out at the gym three times a week. work out be successful Our plan worked out fine. work something out make a We have to work out the total calculation cost before we buy the house.