phrasal verb meaning example sentence

ask somebodyout invite on a Brian asked Judy out to dinner

date and a movie.
ask around ask many I asked around but nobody has
people the seen my wallet.
same
question
add up tosomething equal Your purchases add up
to $205.32.
Backsomething up reverse You'll have to back up your car
so that I can get out.
back somebodyup 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.
Blowsomething up add air We have to blow 50
balloons up for the party.
break down stop Our car broke down at the side
functioning 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.
Breaksomethingdown 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 intosomething enter forcibly The firemen had to break
into the room to rescue the
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
children.

Breaksomething 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 soon
(informal) as the clown started talking.
break out escape The prisoners broke out of jail
when the guards weren't
looking.
Bringsomebodydown make This sad music
unhappy is bringing me down.
Bringsomebody up raise a child My
grandparents brought me up a
fter my parents died.
Bringsomething up start talking My mother walks out of the
about a room when my father brings
subject up sports.
Bringsomething up vomit He drank so much that
he brought his dinner up in the
toilet.
call around phone many We called around but we
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
different weren't able to find the car
places/peopl part we needed.
e
call somebodyback return a I called the company back but
phone call the offices were closed for the
weekend.
call somethingoff cancel Jason called the
wedding off because he
wasn't in love with his fiancé.
call onsomebody ask for an The professor called on me for
answer or question 1.
opinion
call onsomebody visit We called on you last night but
somebody you weren't home.
call somebodyup 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 forsomebody/ 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 as that if you want to catch
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
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
check out leave a hotel You have to check out of the
hotel before 11:00 AM.
Checksomebody/ look at The company checks out all
something out carefully, new employees.
investigate
check outsomebody/ 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.
Cheersomebody up make happier I brought you some flowers
to cheeryou up.
chip in help If everyone chips in we can get
the kitchen painted by noon.
Cleansomething up tidy, clean Please clean up your bedroom
before you go outside.
come acrosssomething find I came across these old
unexpectedly photos when I was tidying the
closet.
come down with  become sick My nephew came down
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 onsomebody/ rely on I am counting on you to make
something dinner while I am out.
cut back on something consume less My doctor wants me to cut
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
back onsweets and fatty
foods.

cut something down make We had to cut the old tree in

something our yard down after the storm.
fall to the
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 when
closely in 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 somethingoff remove with The doctors cut off his leg
something because it was severely
sharp injured.
cut somethingoff stop The phone company cut
providing off our phone because we
didn't pay the bill.
cut somebodyoff take out of a My grandparents cut my
will father offwhen he remarried.
cut somethingout remove part I cut this ad out of the
of something newspaper.
(usually with
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
scissors and
paper)
do somethingover do again My teacher wants me to do my
essay over because she
doesn't like my topic.
do away withsomething discard It's time to do away with all of
these old tax records.
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 third

a place when she fell off her
position/grou bike.
p
drop in/ by/ over come without I might drop in/by/over for tea
an sometime this week.
appointment
Dropsomebody/ 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/dec instead of going to the theatre.
ide
 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 from The money must have fallen
an interior out of my pocket.
fall out (of hair, teeth) His hair started to fall
become loose out when he was only 35.
and
unattached
Figuresomething 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 somethingout to write The form must be filled out in
information in capital letters.
blanks, as on
a form (AmE)
fill somethingup 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 somethingout discover We tried to keep the time of
the party a secret, but
Samantha found it out.
get something communicate I tried to get my
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
across/ over , make point across/over to the judge
understandab 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 withsomething do without Jason always gets away
being noticed withcheating in his maths
or punished tests.
get back return We got back from our vacation
last week.
get somethingback receive Liz finally got her Science
something notes backfrom my room-
you had mate.
before
get back atsomebody retaliate, take My sister got back at me for
revenge stealing her shoes. She stole
my favorite hat.
get back intosomething become I finally got back into my novel
interested in and finished it.
something
again
get onsomething step onto a We're going to freeze out here
vehicle if you don't let us get on the
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
bus.
get oversomething recover from I just got over the flu and now
an illness, my sister has it.
loss, difficulty
get oversomething overcome a The company will have to
problem close if it can't get over the
new regulations.
get round tosomething finally find I don't know when I am going
time to do get to get round to writing the
around thank you cards.
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 somebodyaway reveal hidden His wife gave him away to the
information police.
about
somebody
give somebodyaway take the bride My father gave me away at my
to the altar wedding.
give somethingaway ruin a secret My little sister gave the
surprise party away by
accident.
give somethingaway give The library was giving
something to away old books on Friday.
somebody for
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
free
give somethingback return a I have to give these
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 somethingout give to many They were giving out free
people perfume samples at the
(usually at no department store.
cost)
give somethingup quit a habit I am giving up smoking as of
January 1st.
give up stop trying My math homework was too
difficult so I gave up.
go aftersomebody follow My brother tried to go after the
somebody thief in his car.
go aftersomething try to achieve I went after my dream and
something now I am a published writer.
go againstsomebody compete, We are going against the best
oppose 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 to We're going out for dinner
go on a social tonight.
event
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
go out withsomebody date Jesse has been going out
with Luke since they met last
winter.
go oversomething review Please go over your answers
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 withoutsomething suffer lack or When I was young, we went
deprivation withoutwinter 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 intosomething grow big This bike is too big for him
enough to fit now, but he should grow into it
by next year.
grow out ofsomething 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 wants
adult to be a fireman.

Handsomethingdown give I handed my old comic

something books down to my little
used to cousin.
somebody
else
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
Handsomething in submit I have to hand in my essay by
Friday.
Handsomething out to distribute We will hand out the
to a group of invitations at the door.
people
Handsomething over give (usually The police asked the man
unwillingly) to hand over his wallet and 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.
Holdsomebody/ prevent from I had to hold my
somethingback doing/going dog back because there was a
cat in the park.
hold somethingback hide an Jamie held back his tears at
emotion his grandfather's funeral.
hold on wait a short Please hold on while I transfer
time you to the Sales Department.
hold ontosomebody/ hold firmly Hold onto your hat because
something using your it's very windy outside.
hands or
arms
Holdsomebody/ rob A man in a black
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
something up mask held the bank up this
morning.
keep on doingsomething continue Keep on stirring until the liquid
doing comes to a boil.
Keepsomethingfrom someb not tell We kept our
ody relationship from our parents
for two years.
Keepsomebody/ stop from Try to keep the wet dog out of
something out entering the living room.
Keepsomething up continue at If you keep those
the same rate results up you will get into a
great college.
let somebodydown 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 aftersomebody/ take care of I have to look after my sick
something grandmother.
look down onsomebody think less of, Ever since we stole that
consider chocolate bar your dad
inferior has looked down on me.
look forsomebody/ try to find I'm looking for a red dress for
something the wedding.
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
look forward tosomething be excited I'm looking forward to the
about the Christmas break.
future
look intosomething 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
look out forsomebody/ be especially Don't forget to look out
something vigilant for for snakes on the hiking trail.
look somethingover check, Can you look over my essay
examine for spelling mistakes?
look somethingup search and We can look her phone
find number up on the Internet.
information in
a reference
book or
database
look up tosomebody have a lot of My little sister has
respect for always looked upto me.
Makesomething 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.
Makesomebody up apply My sisters made me up for my
cosmetics to graduation party.
mix somethingup confuse two I mixed up the twins' names
or more again!
things
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
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.
Passsomething out give the same The professor passed the
thing to many textbooks out before class.
people
Passsomething up decline I passed up the job because I
(usually am afraid of change.
something
good)
pay somebodyback return owed Thanks for buying my ticket.
money I'll payyou back on Friday.
pay forsomething be punished That bully will pay for being
for doing mean to my little brother.
something
bad
pick somethingout choose I picked out three sweaters for
you to try on.
Pointsomebody/ indicate with I'll point my
something out your finger boyfriend out when he runs by.
put somethingdown put what you You can put the
are holding groceries down on the kitchen
on a surface counter.
or floor
put somebodydown insult, make The students put the
somebody substitute
feel stupid teacher down because his
pants were too short.
put somethingoff postpone We are putting off our trip until
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
January because of the
hurricane.
put somethingout 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 withsomebody/ tolerate I don't think I can put up
something with three small children in the
car.
put somethingon put clothing/ Don't forget to put on your new
accessories earrings for the party.
on your body
run intosomebody/ meet I ran into an old school-friend
something unexpectedly at the mall.
run oversomebody/ drive a I accidentally ran over your
something vehicle over a bicycle in the driveway.
person or
thing
run over/ throughsomething rehearse, Let's run over/through these
review lines one more time before the
show.
run away leave The child ran away from home
unexpectedly, and has been missing for
escape three days.
run out have none left We ran out of shampoo so I
had to wash my hair with
soap.
Sendsomethingback return My letter got sent back to me
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
(usually by because I used the wrong
mail) stamp.
set somethingup arrange, Our boss set a
organize meeting up with the president
of the company.
set somebodyup 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
people
watching
(usually
boastfully)
sleep over stay You should sleep over tonight
somewhere if the weather is too bad to
for the night drive home.
(informal)
sort somethingout organize, We need to sort the
resolve a bills out before the first of the
problem month.
stick tosomething continue You will lose weight if
doing you stick to the diet.
something,
limit yourself
to one
particular
thing
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
Switchsomething off stop the The light's too bright. Could
energy flow, you switch it off.
turn off
Switchsomething on start the We heard the news as soon as
energy flow, we switched on the car radio.
turn on
take aftersomebody resemble a I take after my mother. We are
family both impatient.
member
take somethingapart purposely He took the car
break into brakes apart and found the
pieces problem.
take somethingback return an item I have to take our new
TV backbecause it doesn't
work.
take off start to fly My plane takes off in five
minutes.
take somethingoff remove Take off your socks and shoes
something and come in the lake!
(usually
clothing)
take somethingout remove from Can you take the
a place or garbage out to the street for
thing me?
take somebodyout pay for My
somebody to grandparents took us out for
go dinner and a movie.
somewhere
with you
tear somethingup rip into pieces I tore up my ex-boyfriend's
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
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)
Thinksomething over consider I'll have to think this job
offer overbefore I make my
final decision.
Throwsomethingaway dispose of We threw our old
furniture away when we won
the lottery.
turn somethingdown decrease the Please turn the TV down while
volume or the guests are here.
strength
(heat, light
etc)
turn somethingdown refuse I turned the job down because
I don't want to move.
turn somethingoff stop the Your mother wants you
energy flow, to turn the TV off and come
switch off for dinner.
turn somethingon start the It's too dark in here.
energy, Let's turn some lights on.
switch on
turn somethingup increase the Can you turn the music up?
volume or This is my favourite song.
strength
(heat, light
etc)
 phrasal verb meaning example sentence
turn up appear Our cat turned up after we put
suddenly posters up all over the
neighborhood.
try somethingon sample I'm going to try these jeans on,
clothing but I don't think they will fit.
try somethingout test I am going to try this new
brand of detergent out.
use somethingup finish the The kids used all of the
supply toothpaste upso we need to
buy some more.
wake up stop sleeping We have to wake up early for
work on Monday.
Warmsomebody/ 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 sit-
for exercise ups 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.
Worksomething out make a We have to work out the total
calculation cost before we buy the house.
GET OVER .. RECOVER FROM
FOR THE TIME BEING .. AT THE CURRENT TIME
FOR GOOD .. FOR EVER
PUT OUT .. WATER A FIRE
BANG ON ABOUT .. SPEAKS A BOUT
BANG ABOUT ..
ROOT ABOUT .. LOOK FOR
NOSE ABOUT .. EXPLORE
MOOCH ABOUT .. SWANING AROUND
PASS ON .. ???
LIE DOWN .. REST
GET BY .. NOT GOOD
GET AHEAD .. ON THE TOP
DIE OF .. CAUSE
PUT OFF . CALL OFF
PAN OUT .. TO DEVELOP IN STH
TAKE OUT .. WITHDRAW
SNAP UP .. TO BUY
LOOK OUT .. WATCH OUT
COME ROUND .. VISIT
PILE UP .. ACCUMULATE
BREAK OUT .. ESCAPE FROM THE PRISON