100 COMMON PHRASAL VERBS
Phrasal Verb:
Meaning:
Examples:
ask sb for
request something.
She asked her boss for a day off work.
ask sb out
invite someone on a date.
He asked the pretty French girl out for a
drink.
blow sth up
explode.
The terrorists blew up the town hall.
back sth up
make a copy of your computer files.
Don’t forget to back up your files to the
cloud.
break down
stop functioning. (machines/vehicles)
My car broke down when I was 10 km
from home.
break up (with sb)
end a relationship.
My girlfriend met someone else and
broke up with me.
bring sth back
take back.
She wants to bring her dress back to the
boutique.
call sb back
return a phone call.
I’m busy in work right now. I will call you
back later.
call sth off
cancel.
They called off the football match
because the weather was terrible.
calm down
change from feeling angry to relaxed.
Calm down, mum! I didn’t break it.
carry on
continue.
I will carry on studying English until I
reach C1 level.
carry sth out
conduct / do.
The doctor carried out some tests.
catch up
improve / work faster to reach the
same standard or rate as sb or sth.
Jack needs to study to catch up with the
class. He missed a lot when he was sick.
check in
arrive and register at a hotel or airport.
I always check in for my flights online.
check out
leave a hotel finally.
We have to check out of the hotel at 11
am.
cheer up
change from feeling sad to happy.
Cheer up! At least you didn’t fail the
exam.
clean sth up
clean completely / tidy up.
He had to clean up the kitchen after the
dinner party
come back
return to.
She didn’t want to come back to work
after the pandemic.
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come down
descend.
The children came down the stairs when
they smelled the pizza.
come in
enter.
Please come in. It’s too cold to play
outside.
come out
exit
She finally came out of her bedroom.
come over
move towards someone.
Come over here!
come round
visit someone’s house.
Liz asked Wendy to come round to her
house for dinner.
dress up
wear special clothes or a costume
I am going to dress up as a witch for
Halloween.
fall out
have an argument and stop speaking
to someone
I fell out with my brother 10 years ago.
We haven’t spoken since.
fall down
fall to the floor/ground.
The tree in our garden fell down in the
storm.
fill sth in
complete a form.
I need to fill in an application form for a
visa.
find sth out
discover information.
Maria found out that Karen was pregnant.
get back
return from a place.
I’m going to France for two days. I leave
on Friday, and I get back on Sunday.
get in
enter an enclosed vehicle/place.
She got into the taxi and told the driver
where she wanted to go.
get off
leave a bus, train, boat or plane.
I always thank the driver when I get off
the bus.
get on
enter a bus, train, boat or plane.
I couldn’t get on the train. It was too
packed.
get on/along
have a good relationship.
I get on really well with my sister. We
never argue.
get out
leave an enclosed vehicle or building.
He got out of the car and walked over to
the house.
get through
survive.
I know it’s a difficult time for you now, but
you will get through it.
get up
leave your bed after sleeping.
I usually get up late on Saturdays and
Sundays.
give sth back
return an object to someone.
She lent me a book last year, and I gave it
back to her yesterday.
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Page 2 of 6
give up
admit defeat.
Don’t give up. You will succeed in the
end.
go ahead
continue to move forward.
I allowed the elderly woman to go ahead
of me in the queue.
go back
return to a place.
I enjoyed Paris so much. I’m going to go
back again next year.
go off
go stale/bad (of food).
The milk went off in the sun earlier.
go on
continue
The teacher told the students to be quiet
but they went on chatting.
go out
leave your house
/a building.
I’m not going to go out tonight. I’m too
tired.
go out with
date/have a romantic relationship with
someone.
Karen is going out with James.
go through
undergo / suffer.
It was really difficult to watch her go
through the loss of her grandmother
grow up
become an adult.
When I grow up, I want to be a fireman.
hang on
wait for a short time.
Hang on, I just need to get my coat.
hang out
spend time with someone.
I like to hang out with my friends on
Saturdays.
hang up
end a telephone call.
She said goodbye and hung up.
hold on
wait for a short time.
Can you hold on a minute? I just need to
use the toilet.
hurry up
go / move faster.
Hurry up! We’re going to be late.
let sb down
disappoint.
Don’t worry. I will be there. I won’t let
you down.
let sb in
allow sb/sth to enter
I went to the new nightclub in town, but
they wouldn’t let me in without ID.
log in/on
sign in to a website or database.
I couldn’t log in to my Instagram because I
had forgotten my password.
log out/off
sign out of a website or database.
I forgot to log out of my email, and my
mum read all my messages.
look after
give care to / supervise someone or
something.
If you want to go out, I can look after the
children.
look around /
look round
search an area
She looked around the shop, but she
didn’t see anything that she liked.
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Page 3 of 6
look back
think about something in the past.
When I look back on my school days, I
always smile.
look for
try to find something.
I’m looking for my glasses. Have you seen
them?
look forward to
be excited about a future event.
I’m really looking forward to the party.
look out
be careful (used to warn someone of
danger)
Look out, you are going to crash!
look sth up
find in a dictionary or directory.
I didn’t understand the word, so I looked
it up in a dictionary.
look up to
admire and respect someone
He really looks up to his older brother.
make up
make peace / become friends again
after an argument.
John and Ted had a big fight yesterday,
but they made up this morning.
make sth up
invent
The students made up a story together.
move in
take possession of a new home
Nikki and Louise moved into a new
apartment in the city.
move on
leave one situation to start doing
something new.
It was time for Morag to move on to a
new job.
move out
vacate a home.
Ciara moved out of her house in the
summer.
pay for
give money in return for something.
I paid for the tickets with my credit card.
pay sb back
return borrowed money.
Can you lend me €100 if I pay you back
on Friday?
pick sth out
choose.
Trudi picked out the red dress for the
party.
pick sth up
take something from a surface.
Your clothes are on the floor. Pick them
up.
pick sb up
collect.
Lucy was late to pick up her kids from
school.
put sth back
return something to its place.
Sorcha put the book back on the shelf.
put sth down
set aside / put something you’re
holding on a surface.
The exam is now over. Please put your
pens down.
put sth off
postpone
He put off the meeting until later in the
week.
put sth on
place clothes or accessories on the
body.
I’m going to put my coat on. It’s cold.
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Page 4 of 6
put sth out
stop something burning.
She put the fire out with a wet towel.
put up with
tolerate / accept
Johns moods are hard to put up with,
run after
chase
The police ran after the thief.
run away
leave / escape a place or situation.
She ran away from home when she 13,
and now she lives on the streets.
set off
start a journey.
They set off at 10 am, and arrived at the
hotel 3 hours later.
set out
start with a particular intention.
He did not set out to hurt her feelings.
sit down
move from a standing to a sitting
position.
She sat down on the sofa and turned on
the TV.
stand up
move from a sitting to a standing
position.
The students stood up when the teacher
entered the room.
switch sth off
stop the flow of electricity / turn off
Don’t forget to switch the computer off
when you are finished.
switch sth on
start the flow of electricity / turn on
It was becoming dark, so I switched on
the light.
take sth back
return sth to a shop.
She took her new dress back to the shop
because there was a mark on it.
take sth down
remove / dismantle.
We usually take the Christmas tree down
on the 5th January.
take off
ascend into the air (an airplane or
rocket)
The plane took off at 3 pm.
take over
take control of something from
someone
Jenny drove the first 300 km, then Tom
took over.
take sth off
remove clothes.
I took off my coat because it was hot
outside.
take sth up
start a new hobby / activity
She took up a new role in the business.
try sth on
put clothes on to see if they fit / look
good.
I want to try this dress on. Where is the
fitting room?
turn around
move to face the opposite direction.
I turned around when I heard a noise
behind me.
turn sth/sb down
refuse / say no.
They offered Claire the job, but she
turned it down.
turn sth off
stop the flow of energy or water /
switch off.
The pizza is ready. Turn off the oven.
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Page 5 of 6
turn sth on
start the flow of energy or water /
switch on.
Turn on the light. It’s getting dark.
turn up
arrive.
Sheila waited in the restaurant for half an
hour, but her date didn’t turn up.
wake (sb) up
open your eyes after sleeping / cause
sb to do this.
The neighbours were playing loud music
late last night. They woke me up.
work out
exercise (usually in the gym)
I work out in the gym, three times a week.
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Irregular Verbs Charts
Tenses Charts
Articles Rules: a, an & the
Pronunciation: -ed endings
Pronunciation: Silent Letters
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