Phrasal Verbs List

Phrasal verbs are usually two-word phrases consisting of verb + adverb or verb +
preposition. Think of them as you would any other English vocabulary. Study them as you come
across them, rather than trying to memorize many at once. Use the list below as a reference
guide when you find an expression that you don't recognize. The examples will help you
understand the meanings. If you think of each phrasal verb as a separate verb with a specific
meaning, you will be able to remember it more easily. Like many other verbs, phrasal verbs often
have more than one meaning.As well as learning their meanings, you need to learn how to use
phrasal verbs properly. Some phrasal verbs require a direct object (someone/something), while
others do not. Some phrasal verbs can be separated by the object, while others cannot. Review
this phrasal verbs grammar from time to time so that you don't forget the rules!

Verb Meaning Example

ask someone out invite on a date Brian asked Judy out to dinner and a
movie.

ask around ask many people the I asked around but nobody has seen
same question my wallet.

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 someone 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 functioning Our car broke down at the side of the
(vehicle, machine) highway in the snowstorm.

break down get upset The woman broke down when the
police told her that her son had died.

break somethingdown divide into smaller Our teacher broke the final
parts project downinto three separate
parts.

break in force entry to a Somebody broke in last night and

building stole our stereo.

break into something enter forcibly The firemen had to break into the
 room to rescue the children.

break something in wear something a few I need to break these shoes in before
times so that it doesn't we run next week.
look/feel new

break in interrupt The TV station broke in to report the

news of the president's death.

break up end a relationship My boyfriend and I broke up before I

moved to America.

break up start laughing The kids just broke up as soon as the

(informal) clown started talking.

break out escape The prisoners broke out of jail when

the guards weren't looking.

break out insomething develop a skin I broke out in a rash after our
condition camping trip.

bring someone down make unhappy This sad music is bringing me down.

bring someone up raise a child My

grandparents brought me up after
my parents died.

bring something up start talking about a My mother walks out of the room
subject when my father brings up sports.

bring something up vomit He drank so much that he brought his

dinner up in the toilet.

call around phone many different We called around but we weren't

places/people able to find the car part we needed.

call someone back return a phone call I called the 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 someone ask for an answer or The professor called on me for

opinion question 1.

call on someone visit someone We called on you last night but you
weren't home.

call someone up phone Give me your phone number and I

willcall you up when we are in town.
calm down relax after being angry You are still mad. You need to calm
down before you drive the car.

not care not like (formal) I don't care for his behaviour.
forsomeone/something

catch up get to the same point You'll have to run faster than that if
as someone else you want to catch up with Marty.

check in arrive and register at a We will get the hotel keys when
hotel or airport wecheck in.

check out leave a hotel You have to check out of the hotel
before 11:00 AM.

checksomeone/somethingout look at carefully, The company checks out all new

investigate employees.

check outsomeone/something look at (informal) Check out the crazy hair on that guy!

cheer up become happier She cheered up when she heard the

good news.

cheer someone up make happier I brought you some flowers

to cheer youup.

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 acrosssomething find unexpectedly I came across these old photos when
I was tidying the closet.

come apart separate The top and bottom come apart if

you pull hard enough.

come down withsomething become sick My nephew came down with chicken
pox this weekend.

come forward volunteer for a task or The woman came forward with her
to give evidence husband's finger prints.

come fromsomewhere originate in The art of origami comes from Asia.

count onsomeone/something rely on I am counting on you to make dinner

while I am out.

cross something out draw a line through Please cross out your old address and
write your new one.
cut back onsomething consume less My doctor wants me to cut back
onsweets and fatty foods.

cut something down make something fall to We had to cut the old tree in our
the ground yarddown after the storm.

cut in interrupt Your father cut in while I was dancing

with your uncle.

cut in pull in too closely in The bus driver got angry when that
front of another vehicle carcut in.

cut in start operating (of an The air conditioner cuts in when the
engine or electrical temperature gets to 22°C.
device)

cut something off remove with something The doctors cut off his leg because it
sharp was severely injured.

cut something off stop providing The phone company cut off our phone
because we didn't pay the bill.

cut someone off take out of a will My grandparents cut my

father off when he remarried.

cut something out remove part of I cut this ad out of the newspaper.
something (usually
with scissors and
paper)

dosomeone/somethingover beat up, ransack (Br.E., He's lucky to be alive. His shop
informal) was done over by a street gang.

do something over do again (N.Amer.) My teacher wants me to do my

essayover because she doesn't like
my topic.

do away withsomething 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 clothing It's a fancy restaurant so we have

todress up.

drop back move back in a Andrea dropped back to third place

position/group when she fell off her bike.

drop in/by/over come without an I might drop in/by/over for tea

appointment sometime this week.
dropsomeone/somethingoff take I have to drop my sister off at work
someone/something before I come over.
somewhere and leave
them/it there

drop out quit a class, school etc I dropped out of Science because it
was too difficult.

eat out eat at a restaurant I don't feel like cooking tonight.

Let's eat out.

end up eventually We ended up renting a movie instead

reach/do/decide of going to the theatre.

fall apart break into pieces My new dress fell apart in the
washing machine.

fall down fall to the ground The picture that you hung up last
nightfell down this morning.

fall out separate from an The money must have fallen out of
interior my pocket.

fall out (of hair, teeth) become His hair started to fall out when he
loose and unattached was only 35.

figure something out understand, find the I need to figure out how to fit the
answer piano and the bookshelf in this room.

fill something in to write information in Please fill in the form with your name,
blanks (Br.E.) address, and phone number.

fill something out to write information in The form must be filled out in capital
blanks (N.Amer.) letters.

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 somethingacross/over communicate, make I tried to get my point across/over to

understandable the judge but she wouldn't listen.

get along/on like each other I was surprised how well my 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 vacation We worked so hard this year that we

had to get away for a week.

get away withsomething do without being Jason always gets away

noticed or punished with cheating in his maths tests.

get back return We got back from our vacation last

week.

get something back receive something you Liz finally got her Science
had before notes backfrom my room-mate.

get back at someone retaliate, take revenge My sister got back at me for stealing
her shoes. She stole my favourite hat.

get back intosomething become interested in I finally got back into my novel and
something again finished it.

get on something step onto a vehicle We're going to freeze out here if you
don't let us get on the bus.

get over something recover from an illness, I just got over the flu and now my
loss, difficulty sister has it.

get over something overcome a problem The company will have to close if it
can'tget over the new regulations.

get round tosomething finally find time to do I don't know when I am going to get
(N.Amer.:get around round to writing the thank you cards.
to something)

get together meet (usually for social Let's get together for a BBQ this
reasons) weekend.

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 someone away reveal hidden His wife gave him away to the police.
information about
someone

give someone away take the bride to the My father gave me away at my
altar wedding.

give something away ruin a secret My little sister gave the surprise
partyaway by accident.
give something away give something to The library was giving away old
someone for free books on Friday.

give something back return a borrowed item I have to give these skates back to
Franz before his hockey game.

give in reluctantly stop My boyfriend didn't want to go to the

fighting or arguing ballet, but he finally gave in.

give something out give to many people They were giving out free perfume
(usually at no cost) samples at the department store.

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 someone follow someone My brother tried to go after the thief

in his car.

go after something try to achieve I went after my dream and now I am

something a published writer.

go against someone compete, oppose We are going against the 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 place I have to go back home and get my

lunch.

go out leave home to go on a We're going out for dinner tonight.

social event

go out with someone date Jesse has been going out with Luke
since they met last winter.

go over something review Please go over your answers before

you submit your test.

go over visit someone nearby I haven't seen Tina for a long time. I
think I'll go over for an hour or two.

go without something suffer lack or When I was young, we went

deprivation withoutwinter boots.

grow apart stop being friends over My best friend and I grew apart after
time she changed schools.
grow back regrow My roses grew back this summer.

grow up become an adult When Jack grows up he wants to be a

fireman.

grow out ofsomething get too big for Elizabeth needs a new pair of shoes
because she has grown out of her
old ones.

grow into something grow big enough to fit This bike is too big for him now, but he
should grow into it by next year.

hand something down give something used to I handed my old comic

someone else books down to my little cousin.

hand something in submit I have to hand in my essay by Friday.

hand something out to distribute to a group We will hand out the invitations at
of people the door.

hand something over give (usually The police asked the man to hand
unwillingly) overhis wallet and his weapons.

hang in stay positive (N.Amer., Hang in there. I'm sure you'll find a
informal) job very soon.

hang on wait a short time Hang on while I grab my coat and

(informal) shoes!

hang out spend time relaxing Instead of going to the party we are
(informal) just going to hang out at my place.

hang up end a phone call He didn't say goodbye before he hung

up.

holdsomeone/somethingback prevent from I had to hold my dog back because

doing/going there was a cat in the park.

hold something back hide an emotion Jamie held back his tears at his
grandfather's funeral.

hold on wait a short time Please hold on while I transfer you to

the Sales Department.

hold ontosomeone/something hold firmly using your Hold onto your hat because it's very
hands or arms windy outside.

holdsomeone/somethingup rob A man in a black mask held the

bank upthis morning.

keep on doingsomething continue doing Keep on stirring until the liquid comes
 to a boil.

keep something fromsomeone not tell We kept our relationship from our
parents for two years.

keepsomeone/somethingout stop from entering Try to keep the wet dog out of the
living room.

keep something up continue at the same If you keep those results up you will
rate get into a great college.

let someone down fail to support or help, I need you to be on time.

disappoint Don't let medown this time.

let someone in allow to enter Can you let the cat in before you go
to school?

log in (or on) sign in (to a website, I can't log in to Facebook because I've
database etc) forgotten my password.

log out (or off) sign out (of a website, If you don't log off somebody could
database etc) get into your account.

look aftersomeone/something take care of I have to look after my sick

grandmother.

look down onsomeone think less of, consider Ever since we stole that chocolate bar
inferior your dad has looked down on me.

look forsomeone/something try to find I'm looking for a red dress for the
wedding.

look forward tosomething be excited about the I'm looking forward to the Christmas
future break.

look into something investigate We are going to look into the price of
snowboards today.

look out be careful, vigilant, and Look out! That car's going to hit you!
take notice

look out be especially vigilant Don't forget to look out for snakes on
forsomeone/something for the hiking trail.

look something over check, examine Can you look over my essay for
spelling mistakes?

look something up search and find We can look her phone number up on
information in a the Internet.
reference book or
database
look up to someone have a lot of respect My little sister has always looked
for up to me.

make something up invent, lie about Josie made up a story about why we
something were late.

make up forgive each other We were angry last night, but

we made up at breakfast.

make someone up apply cosmetics to My sisters made me up for my

graduation party.

mix something up confuse two or more I mixed up the twins' names 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 same thing to The professor passed the
many people textbooks outbefore class.

pass something up decline (usually I passed up the job because I am

something good) afraid of change.

pay someone back return owed money Thanks for buying my ticket.
I'll pay youback on Friday.

pay for something be punished for doing That bully will pay for being mean to
something bad my little brother.

pick something out choose I picked out three sweaters for you to
try on.

pointsomeone/somethingout indicate with your I'll point my boyfriend out when he

finger runs by.

put something down put what you are You can put the groceries down on
holding on a surface or the kitchen counter.
floor

put someone down insult, make someone The students put the substitute
feel stupid teacherdown 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 somethingtogether assemble I have to put the crib together before

the baby arrives.

put up tolerate I don't think I can put up with three

withsomeone/something small children in the car.

put something on put Don't forget to put on your new

clothing/accessories on earrings for the party.
your body

run intosomeone/something meet unexpectedly I ran into an old school-friend at the

mall.

run oversomeone/something drive a vehicle over a I accidentally ran over your bicycle in
person or thing the driveway.

run over/throughsomething rehearse, review Let's run over/through these lines

one more time before the show.

run away leave unexpectedly, The child ran away from home and
escape has been missing for three days.

run out have none left We ran out of shampoo so I had to

wash my hair with soap.

send something back return (usually by mail) My letter got sent back to me
because I used the wrong stamp.

set something up arrange, organize Our boss set a meeting up with the
president of the company.

set someone up trick, trap The police set up the car thief by
using a hidden camera.

shop around compare prices I want to shop around a little before I

decide on these boots.

show off act extra special for He always shows off on his
people watching skateboard
(usually boastfully)

sleep over stay somewhere for You should sleep over tonight if the
the night (informal) weather is too bad to drive home.

sort something out organize, resolve a We need to sort the bills out before
problem the first of the month.

stick to something continue doing You will lose weight if you stick to the
something, limit diet.
 yourself to one
particular thing

switch something off stop the energy flow, The light's too bright. Could
turn off you switch itoff.

switch something on start the energy flow, We heard the news as soon as
turn on weswitched on the car radio.

take after someone resemble a family I take after my mother. We are both
member impatient.

take something apart purposely break into He took the car brakes apart and
pieces found the problem.

take something back return an item I have to take our new

TV back because it doesn't work.

take off start to fly My plane takes off in five minutes.

take something off remove something Take off your socks and shoes and
(usually clothing) come in the lake!

take something out remove from a place or Can you take the garbage out to the
thing street for me?

take someone out pay for someone to go My grandparents took us out for
somewhere with you dinner and a movie.

tear something up rip into pieces I tore up my ex-boyfriend's letters

and gave them back to him.

think back remember (often + to, When I think back on my youth, I

sometimes + on) wish I had studied harder.

think something over consider I'll have to think this job

offer overbefore I make my final
decision.

throw somethingaway dispose of We threw our old

furniture away when we won the
lottery.

turn something down decrease the volume Please turn the TV down while the
or strength (heat, light guests are here.
etc)

turn something down refuse I turned the job down because I don't
want to move.

turn something off stop the energy flow, Your mother wants you to turn the
 switch off TVoff and come for dinner.

turn something on start the energy, It's too dark in here. Let's turn some
switch on lights on.

turn something up increase the volume or Can you turn the music up? This is
strength (heat, light my favourite song.
etc)

turn up appear suddenly Our cat turned up after we put

posters up all over the neighbourhood.

try something on sample clothing I'm going to try these 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 supply The kids used all of the
toothpaste up so we need to buy
some more.

wake up stop sleeping We have to wake up early for work on

Monday.

warmsomeone/somethingup increase the You can warm your feet up in front of

temperature the fireplace.

warm up prepare body for I always warm up by doing sit-ups

exercise before I go for a run.

wear off fade away Most of my make-up wore off before I

got to the party.

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 calculation We have to work out the total cost
before we buy the house.