Phrasal verb list with examples. 5/5

Phrasal verb	Meaning	Example
Run over	Drive a vehicle over a person or thing	I accidentally ran over your bicycle in the driveway.
Run through	Rehearse, review	Let's run through these lines one more time before the show.
Run away	Leave unexpectedly, escape	The child ran away from home and has been missing for three days.
Send back	Return (usually by mail)	My letter got sent back to me because I used the wrong stamp.
Set up	Trick, trap	The police set up the car thief by using a hidden camera.
Show off	Act extra special for people watching (usually boastfully)	He always shows off on his skateboard
Sort out	Organize, resolve a problem	We need to sort the bills out before the first of the month.
Switch off	Stop the energy flow, turn off	The light's too bright. Could you switch it off.
Switch on	Start the energy flow, turn on	We heard the news as soon as we switched on the car radio.
Take after	Resemble a family member	I take after my mother. We are both impatient.
Take apart	Purposely break into pieces	He took the car brakes apart and found the problem.
Take 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 off	Remove something (usually clothing)	Take off your socks and shoes and come in the lake!
Take out	Remove from a place or thing	Can you take the garbage out to the street for me?
Take out	Pay for someone to go somewhere with you	My grandparents took us out for dinner and a movie.
Tear up	Rip into pieces	I tore up my ex-boyfriend's letters and gave them back to him.
Throw away	Dispose of	We threw our old furniture away when we won the lottery.
Turn down	Decrease the volume or strength (heat, light etc)	Please turn the TV down while the guests are here.
Turn down	Refuse	I turned the job down because I don't want to move.
Turn off	Stop the energy flow, switch off	Your mother wants you to turn the TV off and come for dinner.
Turn on	Start the energy, switch on	It's too dark in here. Let's turn some lights on.
Turn up	Increase the volume or strength (heat, light etc)	Can you turn the music up? This is my favourite song.
Turn up	Appear suddenly	Our cat turned up after we put posters up all over the neighbourhood.
Try on	Sample clothing	I'm going to try these jeans on, but I don't think they will fit.
Try out	Test	I am going to try this new brand of detergent out.
Use 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.
Warm up	Increase the temperature	You can warm your feet up in front of the fireplace.
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	Make a calculation	We have to work out the total cost before we buy the house.

Phrasal verb list with examples. 4/5

Phrasal verb	Meaning	Example
Keep out	Stop from entering	Try to keep the wet dog out of the living room.
Keep up	Continue at the same rate	If you keep those results up you will get into a great college.
Let down	Fail to support or help, disappoint	I need you to be on time. Don't let me down this time.
Let in	Allow to enter	Can you let the cat in before you go to school?
Look after	Take care of	I have to look after my sick grandmother.
Look down on	Think less of, consider inferior	Ever since we stole that chocolate bar your dad has looked down on me.
Look for	Try to find	I'm looking for a red dress for the wedding.
Look forward to	Be excited about the future	I'm looking forward to the Christmas break.
Look out for	Be careful, vigilant, and take notice	Look out! That car's going to hit you!
Look over	Check, examine	Can you look over my essay for spelling mistakes?
Look out for	Be specially vigilant for	Don't forget to look out for snakes on the hiking trail.
Look up	Search and find information in a reference book or database	We can look her phone number up on the Internet.
Look up to	Have a lot of respect for	My little sister has always looked up to me.
Make up	Invent, lie about something	Josie made up a story about why we were late.
Make up	Forgive each other	We were angry last night, but we made up at breakfast.
Make up	Apply cosmetics to	My sisters made me up for my graduation party.
Mix up	Confuse two or more things	I mixed up the twins' names again!
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 out	Give the same thing to many people	The professor passed the textbooks out before class.
Pass up	Decline (usually something good)	I passed up the job because I am afraid of change.
Pay back	Return owed money	Thanks for buying my ticket. I'll pay you back on Friday.
Pay for	Be punished for doing something bad	That bully will pay for being mean to my little brother.
Pick out	Choose	I picked out three sweaters for you to try on.
Point out	Indicate with your finger	I'll point my boyfriend out when he runs by.
Put down	Put what you are holding on a surface or floor	You can put the groceries down on the kitchen counter.
Put down	Insult, make someone feel stupid	The students put the substitute teacher down because his pants were too short.
Put off	Postpone	We are putting off our trip until January because of the hurricane.
Put out	Extinguish	The neighbours put the fire out before the firemen arrived.
Put together	Assemble	I have to put the crib together before the baby arrives.
Put up with	Tolerate	I don't think I can put up with three small children in the car.
Put on	Put clothing/accessories on your body	Don't forget to put on your new earrings for the party.
Run into	Meet unexpectedly	I ran into an old school-friend at the mall.

Phrasal verb list with examples. 3/5

Phrasal verb	Meaning	Example
Give away	Take the bride to the altar	My father gave me away at my wedding.
Give away	Ruin a secret	My little sister gave the surprise party away by accident.
Give away	Give something to someone for free	The library was giving away old books on Friday.
Give back	Return a borrowed item	I have to give these skates back to Franz before his hockey game.
Give in	Reluctantly stop fighting or arguing	My boyfriend didn't want to go to the ballet, but he finally gave in.
Give out	Give to many people (usually at no cost)	They were giving out free perfume samples at the department store.
Give 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	Follow someone	My brother tried to go after the thief in his car.
Go after	Try to achieve something	I went after my dream and now I am a published writer.
Go against	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 social event	We're going out for dinner tonight.
Go over	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	Suffer lack or deprivation	When I was young, we went without winter boots.
Grow apart	Stop being friends over time	My best friend and I grew apart after 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 of	Get too big for	Elizabeth needs a new pair of shoes because she has grown out of her old ones.
Grow into	Grow big enough to fit	This bike is too big for him now, but he should grow into it by next year.
Hand down	Give something used to someone else	I handed my old comic books down to my little cousin.
Hand in	Submit	I have to hand in my essay by Friday.
Hand out	To distribute to a group of people	We will hand out the invitations at the door.
Hand over	Give (usually unwillingly)	The police asked the man to hand over his wallet and his weapons.
Hang on	Wait a short time (informal)	Hang on while I grab my coat and shoes!
Hand out	Spend time relaxing (informal)	Instead of going to the party we are just going to hang out at my place.
Hold back	Prevent from doing/going	I had to hold my dog back because there was a cat in the park.
Hold on	Wait a short time	Please hold on while I transfer you to the Sales Department.
Hold up	Rob	A man in a black mask held the bank up this morning.
Keep on	Continue doing	Keep on stirring until the liquid comes to a boil.
Keep from	Not tell	We kept our relationship from our parents for two years.

Phrasal verb list with examples. 1/5

Phrasal_verb	Meaning	Example
Add up to	Equal	I purchased add up to $100.
Answer back	Answer in bad way	She answered her mother back.
Back up	Reverse	You'll have to back up your car so that I can get out.
Back 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.
Break down	Stop functioning (vehicle, machine)	Our car broke down in the middle of the town
Break down	Get upset	The girl broke down when she new her dog had died.
Break down	Divide into smaller parts	Our teacher broke the final project down into three separate parts.
Break into	Enter forcibly	The firemen had to break into the room to rescue the old woman.
Break up	End a relationship	My girlfriend and I broke up before I moved to Europe.
Break up	Start laughing (informal)	The kids just broke up as soon as the clown started talking.
Break out	Escape	The prisoner broke out of jail when the guard was sleeping.
Bring up	Raise a child	My grandparents brought me up after my parents died.
Call back	Return a phone call	I called the company back but the offices had just closed.
Call off	Cancel	Jason called the wedding off because he wasn't in love with his fiancé.
Call on	Ask for an answer or opinion	The professor called on me for question 1.
Call on	Visit someone	We called on you last night but you weren't home.
Call up	Phone	Give me your phone number and I will call you up when we are in town.
(not) care for	Not like (formal)	I don't care for his behaviour.
Catch up	Get to the same point as someone else	You'll have to run faster than that if you want to catch up with Marty.
Check in	Arrive and register at a hotel or airport	We will get the hotel keys when we check in.
Cheer up	Become happier	She cheered up when she heard the good news.
Chip in	Help	If everyone chips in we can get the kitchen painted by noon.
Clean up	Tidy, clean	Please clean up your bedroom before you go outside.
Come apart	Separate	The top and bottom come apart if you pull hard enough.
Come down with	Become sick	My cousin came down with influenza this weekend.
Come forward	Volunteer for a task or to give evidence	The woman came forward with her husband's finger prints.
Come from	Originate in	The art of origami comes from Asia.
Count on	Rely on	I am counting on you to make dinner while I am out.
Cross out	Draw a line through	Please cross out your old address and write your new one.
Cut back	Consume less	My doctor wants me to cut back on sweets and fatty foods.
Cut down	Make something fall to the ground	We had to cut the old tree in our yard down after the storm.

Phrasal verb list with examples. 2/5

Phrasal verb	Meaning	Example
Cut in	Interrupt	Your father cut in while I was dancing with your uncle.
Cut in	Pull in too closely in front of another vehicle	The bus driver got angry when that car cut in.
Cut in	Start operating (of an engine or electrical device)	The air conditioner cuts in when the temperature gets to 22°C.
Cut off	Remove with something sharp	The doctors cut off his leg because it was severely injured.
Cut off	Stop providing	The phone company cuts off our phone because we didn't pay the bill.
Cut off	Take out of a will	My grandparents cut my father off when he remarried.
Cut out	Remove part of something (usually with scissors and paper)	I cut this ad out of the newspaper.
Do away with	Discard	It's time to do away with all of these old tax records.
Do 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.
Drop in	Come without an appointment	I might drop in for tea some time this week.
Drop by	Come without an appointment	I might drop by for tea some time this week.
Drop off	Take someone/something somewhere and leave them/it there	I have to drop my sister off at work before I come over.
Drop out	Quit a class, school, etc	I dropped out of Science because it was too difficult
End up	Eventually reach/do/decide	We ended up renting a movie instead 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 night fell down this morning.
Fall out	Separate from an interior	The money must have fallen out of my pocket.
Fall out	(Of hair, teeth) become loose and unattached	His hair started to fall out when he was only 35.
Figure out	Understand, find the answer	I need to figure out how to fit the piano and the bookshelf in this room.
Fill in	To write information in blanks (Br.E.)	Please fill in the form with your name, address, and phone number.
Fill out	To write information in blanks (N.Amer.)	The form must be filled out in capital letters.
Fill 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?
Get across	Communicate, make understandable	I tried to get my point across to the judge but she wouldn't listen.
Get over	Communicate, make understandable	I tried to get my point over to the judge but she wouldn't listen.
Get along	Like each other	I was surprised how well my new girlfriend and my sister got along.
Get on	Like each other	I was surprised how well my new girlfriend and my sister got 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 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 away	Reveal hidden information about someone	His wife gave him away to the police.