Phrasal Verbs

A verb that is followed by a prepositional phrase or an adverb is a phrasal verb. The verb, in combination the adverb or preposition that follows it, creates an entirely different meaning than when the original verb is used alone.

For example:

To break = to damage	Jim always breaks his toys.
To break up = to separate, interrupt or disperse something	I’d hate to break up their lunch meeting for something so trivial.

The word particle is sometimes used as a definition of the preposition or adverb that follows the phrasal verb. The large group of verbs referred to as “multi-word” or “multi-part” verbs includes phrasal verbs. The large variety of multi-word verbs, including phrasal verbs, are important parts of informal or casual spoken and written communication in the English language. They should not be used in formal writing, such as academic texts, where they would be considered inappropriate. For example, an article for a medical journal should use the words “to dissect” rather than “to cut up.”

Transitive and Intransitive phrasal verbs:
Some phrasal verbs are referred to as transitive.Transitive verbs always have a direct object.
For example:The police broke up the loud party. (The object of the verb is “party.”)

Some other phrasal verbs are called intransitive verbs. Intransitive verbs have no object.
For example: I cracked up when he was telling his story.

Separable or Inseparable phrasal verbs:
Transitive phrasal verbs that have the object placed between the verb and the preposition are separable phrasal verbs.
For example: I broke the meeting up at noon. (The object, “the meeting” is placed between the verb and the adverb.)
Another example : I tore the carpet up.

When transitive phrasal verbs have the object placed after the preposition or adverb, they are inseparable.
For example : Amy broke off the engagement. (The object of the verb, “the engagement” is placed after the adverb.)

There are some transitive phrasal verbs that can have an object in either place:
For example: “Amy broke the engagement off.” has the same meaning as “Amy broke off the engagement.”

If the object is a pronoun however, it can only be placed between the verb and preposition.
For example, we must say: I cracked them up.
We can not say: I cracked up them.

Verb	Meaning	Example
add up	make sense	She knew the girls were lying because their stories just didn’t add up.
add on	put something together with another object	We plan to add on to the house next year.
add in	to insert	Do you mind if I add in a few more details?
bang about	move around noisily	I love when the kids visit, but I can’t stand the way they bang about the house.
bang something up	damage something	They always bang up my cabinet doors when they slam into them.
bow to someone	permit someone’s will	I usually bow to my Tom’s ideas.
bow over	be overly permissive	I don’t know why I always bow over to make you happy.
carry on	continue	Rich will carry on the presentation despite the interruptions.
carry someone through	provide support	Amy didn’t know how she would have made it without Jim to carry her through during her struggles.
carry over	continue past a certain point	The meeting will probably carry over through lunch time.
chew off	remove by biting	Emily always chews the eraser off her pencils.
chew someone out	criticize harshly	The boss is really going to chew him out for that mistake.
chew up	damage something	If you don’t lubricate the gears, they are going to be all chewed up soon.
chew over something	ponder	Terry wanted to chew over the idea before he committed to it.
eat up	consume all of something	Every time she makes apple pie, the kids just eat it up.
eat over	have a meal at someone else’s house.	Dave is going to eat over at Jim’s house.
eat away	erode	The water will eventually eat away at the bedrock.
eat out	dine at a restaurant	Maybe we should eat out tonight, I don’t feel like cooking.
eat into	use something	This renovation is really going to eat into our savings.
fall out	stop out of exhaustion	I couldn’t run any longer, I knew I was going to fall out of the marathon.
fall in	get in line	Fall in kids, we’re headed back to class.
fall into something	accidentally involve	Diane is going to fall into a bad situation if she doesn’t choose her friends carefully.
fall for something	to believe	I’m not going to fall for that old lie!
fall for someone	to be in love with, or infatuated with someone	He loved seeing her so much, he just knew he was going to fall for her.
fall over something	trip because of an item	Clean your mess up before someone falls over the toys.
far out	amazing	Man, that movie was far out.
fill in	work for someone	Dave asked Bill to fill in for him during his vacation.
fill out something	complete a form	Just fill out this release while you wait for the doctor.
fill up something	completely fill something	Can you believe how much it costs to fill up the gas tank?
finish off	consume entirely	Gary will finish off the leftovers tomorrow night.
finish with something	done using	As soon as I finish with the hammer, I will put it away.
fish for	try to find information	Rob seemed to be fishing for something with his questions.
flow over	move freely on top of something	The stream of water flows over the stones.
flow over	fill over capacity	Stop pouring, the milk will flow over!
flow in	move easily inside of	The open windows let the scent of grass flow in.
flow through	move between points	That stream flows through three counties.
freeze someone out	be rude to, exclude	I don’t want to freeze him out, but he’s so rude to the rest of us.
freeze up	paralyzed with fear	Every time she has to make a public speech, she freezes up.
freeze over	become covered with ice	They will go ice skating as soon as the lake freezes over.
front for	represent something else	That shop is just a front for an illegal operation.
frown on	disapprove of	George will frown on our plans.
get up	wake in the morning	She has to get up extra early because of the commute.
get out	leave a place	I can’t wait to get out of this boring meeting.
get over something	heal emotionally	Bill really needs to get over Michelle.
get into	argue	Sam and Bill always get into it over politics.
get through	maintain presence through a time period or event	I just have to get through the next hour and then I’m free.
get away	not get caught	The robber is going to get away with the crime.
get by	have just enough to live on	Gene barely has enough money to get by on.
get around	visit many places	Everyone knows him, he really gets around the night scene.
get at someone	criticize	He is really going to get at me when he finds my mistake.
get along with someone	have good relationship	Tara and Bill get along with each other well.
get back to	return communication	I’ll have to get back to you a little later.
give up something	stop or let go of something	I just cannot seem to give up cigarettes.
give someone up	to tattle or tell on someone for doing something wrong	If I get in trouble for this, I’m going to give him up too.
give in	collapse or no longer support	My dad is always worried the roof will give in during heavy snow.
give into something	relent or allow something or someone	She’s finally going to give into his demands.
give something over	release	That’s her toy, give it over.
go after	chase	They were going to go after her, but she was long gone.
go through	endure	You wouldn’t believe what I had to go through to get here on time!
go around	mingle in a crowd	Just go around and introduce yourself.
go under	fail usually in a business due to lack of money	If they can’t meet their overhead, the business will soon go under.
go for	try to achieve something	Fred is going to go for the management position.
go away	take a vacation	We are going to go away for the weekend.
go away	to leave	I wish he would go away
go over	examine or review with others	Can you go over this essay for me?
hand something back	return	Just hand it back when you’re finished using it.
hand something over	give an object	Just hand over the keys and I’ll drive.
hand out	disperse to a group	They hand out free donuts every Friday.
hand something off	pass something over	She had too many chores, so she had to hand some off to her husband.
hang up	terminate phone conversation	Why does she always hang up before I say goodbye?
hang out	socialize with	I’m going to go hang out with Dave after school.
hang in	maintain or continue to do	Hang in there, it will get easier soon.
have around	object in presence	Tim’s a good guy to have around.
have over	entertain	Jim is going to have Tina and Bill over for dinner.
have down	record	I have you down for an appointment on Monday.
have out	fight	The way they were arguing, I thought they were going to have it out right there!
have something out	take object from storage	It’s July, why do you have your winter coat out?
have something on	to wear an item	I don’t even have my shoes on yet!
have to	required	She will have to drop him off before work.
jump up	rise suddenly	Dave knew he was running late, so he jumped up from his bed to get dressed.
jump down	hop off something	Jump down off the counter and get your things ready.
jump over something	make efforts	Jim had to jump over several hurdles to complete the project on time.
lash something down	to tie securely	Make sure to lash down the luggage before we leave.
lash out	react angrily	She can’t handle any criticism, she will lash out at the nearest person.
lash into someone	attack or criticize verbally, angrily	The simple mistake did not warrant the way he lashed into his employee.
make up	fabricate	She can make up stories right off the top of her head.
make out	took away with	Bella always makes out like a bandit on Christmas!
make off	to take	Burglars usually make off with their victim’s jewelry and cash.
make of	understand or have an opinion	Bill is not sure what to make of his daughter’s fashion style.
make over	change appearance of something or someone	Susan decided to make over her kitchen’s outdated design.
make it	to arrive	I’m never going to make it to work on time in this traffic.
make for	head towards	Every time Sam comes in, Ellen immediately makes for the door.
make up to	apologetic compensation for an action	I’m sorry I have to cancel our dinner plans, I promise I’ll make it up to you.
measure up	be good enough	She just didn’t measure up to the company’s standards.
measure against	judge by comparison	Tim hates being measured against his brother.
measure out	weigh the exact amount needed	Carol measures out each ingredient before she begins cooking.
opt for something	choose	She will probably opt for the green coat instead of the red one.
opt in	choose to be a part of	Sara will opt in the PTO committee this year.
opt out	choose to not be a part of something	Bill says he will opt out of the PTO committee this year.
pay someone back	return money borrowed	Tim said he’d pay me back next week.
pay off	settling a debt	Jim was thrilled because he could finally pay off his car loan.
pay for something	purchase	It’s Andy’s turn to pay for dinner.
pay back	revenge	Tim vows to pay George back for the practical joke he played this morning.
pay down	reduce debt	Hank will pay down the loan gradually over the next three months.
pick up	clean an area	Bill has to pick up his room before he can go out to play.
pick something out	make a choice of objects	Just pick out the dress you want so we can leave!
pick on someone	tease or taunt	If you pick on your brother one more time today, you’re going to be punished.
pick at	dig at or irritate	Don’t pick at those pimples, you’ll get scars from them.
pick over	examine thoroughly	She picked over all the apples in the bin before choosing one.
pick something apart	examine and determine flaw	She is going to pick apart my whole essay since I didn’t check my grammar.
reel in	attract	She plans to reel investors in with her presentation.
reel off	state facts rapidly	The way she can reel off facts off the top of her head is impressive.
ride something out	maintain presence during	We are just going to ride out the hurricane at home.
ride off	leave on a horse, bike, etc	Jane plans to ride off on her motorcycle and never return.
ride up	rise on the body	Amy has a hard time finding shirts that don’t ride up on her waist.
ride through	travel in and out of	We’ll ride through Indiana on our way to California.
rise up	increase level of	Eventually, the water will rise up to the ceiling.
rise up to	meet standards	Jim’s submission didn’t rise up to the magazines standards.
rise against	protest	The whole group will rise against the government regulations.
roll back	reduce, as in prices or expenses	They are going to roll back their expenses by laying off employees.
roll over on someone	provide information about someone	The criminal is going to roll over on his accomplice for a reduced sentence.
roll around	time in the future	By the time Christmas rolls around she’ll be all done with her shopping.
roll out	launch a plan	We are going to roll out our new marketing strategy in May.
run after	to chase	Sue didn’t run after the school bus because she knew it wouldn’t stop.
run around	activity in a certain area	Dan had to run around and pick up the house before his guests arrived.
run up	increase money owed	Sally didn’t mean to run her debt up so high.
run for	vie for an elected position	I hear he’s going to run for Congress next term.
run about	frenzied activity	The guests are nearly here, we have run about and finish cleaning.
run in	go in quickly	I just need to run in this store for a moment.
run into someone	accidentally meet a person	Sally was hoping they wouldn’t run into her ex-boyfriend at the party.
run into something	accidentally hit an object	Look out! You’re going to run into that telephone pole at the end of the driveway.
scrape by	barely manage	He barely makes enough to scrape by.
scrape something up	manage to collect funds needed	Joe was somehow able to scrape up enough to pay for a concert ticket.
scrape through	manage to barely pass	Jan only just managed to scrape through final exams last semester.
set something up	to arrange something	It’s time to set up the Christmas decorations.
set someone up	deceive, cause blame	The defendant claimed he was set up by the police.
set something aside	postpone	You’ll just have to set your plans aside until you’re finished with your work.
set into something	begin	I was just about to set into a new novel.
set back	cost money	That car set Jim back $30,000.
set something back	caused delay or demotion	That mistake set his career goals back significantly.
set apart	distinguish from a group	Her ambition and drive really set her apart from other employees.
set forth	begin journey	Bill set forth, headed for the Alaskan wilderness.
set off	detonate	The mines are set off by weight sensors.
set someone off	cause anger	Just a simple mistake is enough to set off the boss.
set off	complements	The wall color really sets off the floor’s coloring.
sit on something	be seated on top of	Shelly knew she wasn’t supposed to sit on the counters but she did anyway.
sit up	rise from prone position	Every morning she has to sit up and push the snooze button on the alarm clock.
sit in something	be seated inside of	I don’t know why the dog likes to sit in laundry baskets.
sit in on	to observe without participating	I sometimes sit in on the morning meetings.
sit through	be present during	Bill hates having to sit through boring presentations.
slam into something	hit forcefully	Slow down before you slam the car into the mailbox!
sleep in	rise late in the morning	Gary didn’t mean to sleep in and be late for work.
sleep tight	sleep comfortably	Goodnight sweetheart, sleep tight and have sweet dreams.
steal someone away	take someone somewhere quietly	Jim asked if he could steal her away for a week in the tropics.
steal in	sneak into	You distract the guard and I’ll steal in the room.
steal over	experience emotion	She felt anger stealing over her.
take in	care for	Mary takes in every stray animal she sees.
take something over	take authority of something	Bill is going to take over the project since I don’t have enough time to complete it.
take off	leave a place	Jim is about to take off, you should go say goodbye.
talk around	avoid a topic during conversation	Bill likes to talk around problems instead of addressing them.
talk into	persuade	Sue is trying to talk Jim into going out this evening.
talk out	discuss problem to find solution	Instead of yelling, Amber suggested they sit and calmly talk it out.
talk through	communicated by	Sam and Ed only talk through text or email.
talk someone/something up	offer praise to 3rd party	Jill managed to talk the product up so well, everyone bought one.
time out	pause a game or conversation	Time out guys, I need to use the bathroom.
tip someone off	tell someone information	Sue called the police to tip them off about the criminal activity in her neighborhood.
tip something over	make something spill	She hit the table and made the glass of water tip over.
think of someone	to have an opinion	Sara didn’t think much of Joe.
think on	to consider or ponder	I’ll have to think on it a little while before I can answer you.
think back	remember	When I think back now, it should have been easy to see my mistakes.
think out	plan or prepare	Bill should really think out his travel arrangements before he travels.
think up	use imagination to create an idea	Amber is trying to think up a way to leave to the party politely.
think over	reassess, reconsider	That’s a pretty horrible idea, are you sure you don’t want to think it over first?
throw in	give up	That’s it, I’m going to throw in the towel and let you handle it.
throw up	vomit	Jeff had food poisoning, which made him throw up for three days.
throw something over	toss something	Hey, will you throw the remote over here?
throw over something	toss higher than	Just throw the keys over the car, I’ll catch them.
throw something away	get rid of	Bill would never throw anything away.
toss back	drink quickly	Dan can really toss back some sodas.
toss around	discuss an idea informally	If we could just toss this around, we could come up with a few more ideas.
toss up	undecided ending	We couldn’t agree on anything, the meeting was a toss up.
trade something up	replace with something better	Even though it cost more, the more expensive car was a good trade up from her old car.
trade something down	replace with something lesser	She wanted to trade down on her vehicle to save money.
trade off	bargain or deal	They made a trade off that was mutually beneficial.
trade something in	replace	Bill is going to trade his van in for a new one.
turn something in	hand in assignment	Sara needs to finish her essay, she has to turn it in tomorrow morning.
turn something off	Stop machine	Turn off the television when this show is over.
turn to someone	ask someone for help	When I am upset and overwhelmed, I usually turn to my mother for advice.
turn up	appear	Don’t worry, I’m sure your watch will turn up soon.
tune in	watch t.v. or listen to a radio	Thirty thousand people tune in to our program every day.
tune out	ignore, not pay attention	The presentation was so boring, Sara tuned out after ten minutes.
tune something up	maintain and enhance performance	I should really tune up my car this year before winter.
wait on someone	serve someone food or drink	The waitress didn’t have the patience to wait on the large group very well.
wait up	hold on	Hey, wait up Jenna, you’re going too fast.
work someone up	excite	Football games always work Jim up.
work out	settle differences	It took a few hours, but we able to work out our problems.
work something out	plan details	Jim said he’d work out the travel arrangements later.
work someone over	assault violently	By the look of his black eye, I’d say someone really worked him over.
work through	examine	Jim must work through the monthly budget each week.
zip around	move quickly	It’s amazing the way she zips around the place.
zip by something	go by quickly	Did you see that car zip by?
zip it	be quiet	Zip it kids, the movie is about to start.
zoom off	leave quickly	Right after the speaker is done, we will zoom off to the party.
zoom in	focus closely	You’ll need to zoom the lens in for the best photo.
zoom out	focus less closely	Zoom out so you get more of the background in the photo.
zoom by something	go past quickly	By the way that car zoomed by, I’d say the driver was going well above the speed limit.