800 Phrasal verbs thông dụng

What are phrasal verbs? 
1. A phrasal verb is a verb plus a preposition or adverb which creates a meaning 
different from the original verb. 
Example: 
I ran into my teacher at the movies last night. run + into = meet 
He ran away when he was 15. run + away = leave home 
2. Some phrasal verbs are intransitive. An intransitive verb cannot be followed by an 
object. 
Example: 
He suddenly showed up. "show up" cannot take an object 
3. Some phrasal verbs are transitive. A transitive verb can be followed by an object. 
Example: 
I made up the story. "story" is the object of "make up" 
4. Some transitive phrasal verbs are separable. The object is placed between the verb 
and the preposition. In this Phrasal Verb Dictionary, separable phrasal verbs are marked 
by placing a * between the verb and the preposition / adverb. 
Example: 
I talked my mother into letting me borrow the car. 
She looked the phone number up. 
5. Some transitive phrasal verbs are inseparable. The object is placed after the 
preposition. In this Phrasal Verb Dictionary, inseparable phrasal verbs are marked by 
placing a + after the preposition / adverb. 
Example: 
I ran into an old friend yesterday. 
They are looking into the problem. 
6. Some transitive phrasal verbs can take an object in both places. In this Phrasal Verb 
Dictionary, such phrasal verbs are marked with both * and + . 
Example: 
I looked the number up in the phone book. 
I looked up the number in the phone book. 
7. WARNING! Although many phrasal verbs can take an object in both places, you must 
put the object between the verb and the preposition if the object is a pronoun. 
Example: 
I looked the number up in the phone book. 
I looked up the number in the phone book. 
I looked it up in the phone book. correct 
I looked up it in the phone book. incorrect 
Phrasal Verb ( A ) 
Phrasal Verb Definition Example 
act up 
behave or function 
improperly 
I think I need to take my car to the mechanic 
because it's acting up again. 
add * up + calculate a sum I added up the receipts and it totaled $135.46. 
add up to + equal an amount The total expenses added up to $325.00. 
add up make sense Her story doesn't add up. I think she is lying. 
ask * out + invite on a date 
I can't believe that Joe finally asked me out on a 
date! 
ask * over + invite to one's home Why don't we ask the Johnsons over for dinner? 
Phrasal Verb ( B ) 
Phrasal Verb Definition Example 
back down 
stop defending your opinion in a 
debate 
Jane never backs down. She always 
wins arguments. 
back out 
not keep (a promise, 
agreement,deal) 
Sam backed out at the last second. 
back out of + 
not keep (a promise, 
agreement, deal) 
Sam backed out of the agreement at 
the last second. 
back * up + give support 
You need examples to back up your 
opinion. 
back up move backwards, reverse 
Could you back up a little so I can 
open this drawer. 
bawl * out criticize, reprimand (inf.) She bawled him out for arriving late. 
bear down on + bite 
The soldier had to bear down on the 
leather strap while the doctor 
removed a bullet from the soldier's 
arm. 
bear down on + take strong measures against 
The U.S.A. is bearing down on drug 
traffickers. 
bear on + have to do with 
This information may bear on this 
case. 
bear up withstand 
I didn't think he would bear up so 
well in that situation. 
bear up under + withstand 
How did he bear up under such 
extreme pressure. 
bear with + be patient 
Please bear with me while I fill out 
the paperwork. 
blow in visit unexpectedly (inf.) 
My cousin blew in unexpectedly with 
his entire family. 
blow over pass without creating a problem 
All this negative publicity will blow 
over in a couple of weeks. 
blow * up + 
make explode;destroy using 
explosives 
The terrorists blew the bridge up. 
blow up explode 
The bomb blew up before they could 
defuse it. 
blow up suddenly become very angry 
When Joan heard the news, she 
blew up and rushed out of the room. 
break * down + analyze in detail 
We need to break this problem down 
in order to solve. 
break down stop working properly The truck broke down in the desert. 
break down become mentally ill 
She broke down after her husband 
died. 
break * in + 
wear or use something new 
until it is comfortable 
I need to break these shoes in before 
I go hiking. 
break in interrupt 
While we were discussing the 
situation, Terri broke in to give her 
opinion. 
break in enter a place unlawfully 
The burglar broke in between 
midnight and 3 AM. 
break in on + interrupt (a conversation) 
Jane broke in on the conversation 
and told us to get back to work. 
break into + enter a house unlawfully 
The burglar broke into the house 
between midnight and 3 AM. 
break into + interrupt (a conversation) 
Jane broke into the conversation and 
told us what she knew. 
break * off + end something 
Sally broke her engagement to John 
off. 
break out appear violently 
Violent protests broke out in 
response to the military coup. 
break out + 
use something extravagant for 
celebration 
He broke out the champagne to 
celebrate his promotion. 
break out of + escape 
The murderer broke out of the 
prison. 
break * up + break into pieces 
I broke the cracker up into pieces 
and put it in the soup. 
break * up + 
disperse (a crowd), stop (a 
fight) 
The police broke the demonstration 
up before it got out of control. 
break up end a relationship 
Sam and Diane broke up again. 
What a rocky relationship. 
bring * about + cause to happen 
Democracy brought about great 
change in the lives of the people. 
bring * along + bring with 
When we go to the forest, bring your 
wildlife guide along. 
bring * around 
change someone's mind, 
convince someone 
She doesn't want to go, but we'll 
eventually bring her around. 
bring * away 
learn or gain (from an 
experience) 
My trip across the Sahara was 
difficult, but I brought a new 
appreciation for life away from the 
experience. 
bring * off + 
succeed at something difficult or 
unexpected 
You robbed the bank! I can't believe 
you brought that off. 
bring * on + cause something 
I can't believe she got so angry. 
What brought that on? 
bring * out + highlight, stress 
Your new shirt brings out the color of 
your eyes. 
bring * over + bring to someone's house 
When you visit me, why don't you 
bring over your son. 
bring * to revive consciousness 
We used smelling salts to bring her 
to after she fainted. 
bring * up + mention 
I didn't want to bring up the fact that 
she was unemployed. 
bring * up + raise ( a child) 
Sam was brought up in South 
Carolina. 
brush * off + 
ignore something or someone 
(inf.) 
Mary brushed her ex-boyfriend off at 
the party. 
burn * down + destroy by setting fire to 
The children burned the house down 
while playing with matches. 
burn down 
burn until completely gone 
(building) 
Two buildings burnt down in the fire. 
burn up be hot 
I am burning up in here - open the 
window. 
burn up consume by fire 
The papers were burned up in the 
fire. 
burn * up + destroy by fire He burnt up the files. 
buy * out + 
buy the shares of a company or 
the shares the other person 
owns of a business 
Pacific Inc. was bought out by a 
company from Oregon. 
buy * up + 
purchase the entire supply of 
something 
We bought up all the beer in the 
store. 
Phrasal Verb ( C ) 
Phrasal Verb 
Definition Example 
call for + require (as in a recipe) 
This recipe calls for milk, not 
water. 
call * off + cancel something 
They called the picnic off because 
of the rain. 
call * off + 
order to stop (an invasion, 
guard dogs) 
He called off the dogs when he 
saw it was his neighbor. 
call on + visit 
Mark called on Naomi while he 
was in town. 
call on + 
invite someone to speak in a 
meeting or a classroom 
Professor Tanzer called on Tim to 
answer the question. 
call * up + telephone 
I called Sam up to see if he 
wanted to go to the movies. 
calm * down + make someone relax 
You can calm the baby down by 
rocking her gently. 
care for + nurse someone or something 
He cared for the bird until its wing 
healed. 
care for + like someone or something 
I don't care for sour cream on my 
potato. 
carry on + 
continue (a conversation, a 
game) 
Please, carry on. I didn't mean to 
interrupt you. 
carry on about + continue in an annoying way 
He kept carrying on about how 
much money he makes. 
carry on with + continue 
I want you to carry on with the 
project while I am out of town. 
carry * out + 
complete and/or accomplish 
something 
The secret agent carried out his 
orders exactly as planned. 
carry * over + 
continue on a subsequent day, 
page, etc. 
The meeting carried over into 
lunch time. 
catch on slowly start to understand (inf.) He caught on after a few minutes. 
catch up make up for lost time 
I will never catch up. I am too 
behind in my work. 
catch up with + 
speed up to be at the same 
place as a person or thing in 
front of you 
I had to run to catch up with the 
others. 
catch up on + become up-to-date 
I need to catch up on world 
events. I haven't seen the news in 
ages. 
check back return to see if everything is OK 
We will check back tomorrow to 
make sure the project is finished. 
check by + 
go to a place to see if 
everything is OK 
We need to check by the office to 
see if the documents are ready. 
check for + try to find 
They checked for termites before 
they bought the house. 
check in enter a hospital, hotel etc. 
They need to check in before 
noon. 
check into + enter a hospital, hotel etc. 
They checked into the hotel at 
11:00 AM. 
check into + 
investigate, look for (often 
through a service) 
We are checking into discount 
flights to London. 
check * off + 
make a mark next to (an item 
on a list) 
Check each name off the list. 
check on + make sure something is OK 
Let's check on the baby again 
before we go to sleep. 
check * out + investigate, take a look at 
He checked out the new 
restaurant down the street. 
check out leave a hotel, hospital It's already eleven. We need to 
check out. 
check out of + leave a hotel, hospital 
We checked out of the hotel 
before ten. 
check * over + 
closely examine the condition of 
something 
He checked over the old car to see 
if it was worth buying. 
check up on + 
investigate someone or 
something 
The police are checking up on the 
bomb threats. 
check * through 
send luggage through (to a 
destination) 
Your luggage will be checked 
through to Paris. 
check with + ask a person for confirmation 
He needs to check with his 
parents before he goes. 
cheer * up make someone feel cheerful The party really cheered me up. 
cheer up become cheerful 
Cheer up. Everything will be all 
right. 
chew * up + chew into small pieces The dog chewed up my shoe. 
chop * down + fell/cut ( a tree) 
The lumberjack chopped the tree 
down. 
chop * up + chop/cut into small bits 
He chopped the meat up into little 
pieces. 
clean * up + tidy 
Susan cleaned the mess up before 
she left. 
clear out leave ( inf.) Everybody clear out! We're closed. 
clear * up + tidy 
Susan cleared up the mess before 
she left. 
close * down + close a place permanently 
The corner market closed down 
because they didn't have many 
customers. 
close down close permanently 
The bar was closed down because 
they served alcohol to minors. 
close in on + approach and threaten 
The rebels were closing in on the 
capital, so the government called 
in the army. 
close * up + close temporarily 
They are closing the ski resort up 
for the summer. 
close up close temporarily 
The ski resort is closing up for the 
summer. 
come about occur / happen 
How did you idea for the book 
come about. 
come across + discover by accident 
They came across some lost 
Mayan ruins in the jungle. 
come across + 
initially seem or have the 
appearance 
He comes across as rather rude, 
but he isn't. 
come along accompany someone If you want, you can come along. 
come along with + accompany 
Sam came along with us to the 
beach. 
come along progress 
How's the research paper coming 
along. 
come along with + progress 
How are you coming along with 
the research paper. 
come away 
leave a place with a particular 
feeling or impression 
I came away from the meeting 
feeling like the presentation was a 
success. 
come back return What time are you coming back? 
come by + get, receive 
How did you come by that new 
Mercedes? 
come by visit a person at their house I'll come by later this afternoon. 
come down with + become sick with He came down with the flu. 
come into + inherit 
He came into a large sum of 
money when his aunt died. 
come off + fall off, break off 
The handle came off the suitcase 
when I picked it up. 
come out appear 
I didn't see the car at first. It came 
out of nowhere. 
come out reveal you are homosexual Sam finally came out last month. 
come out turn out, end up The pictures came out great. 
come out with + 
produce and distribute a 
product 
Microsoft is coming out with a new 
video game system next month. 
come over visit someone at their house 
Why don't you come over after 
work for dinner. 
come to regain consciousness 
Don't worry! She faints all the time. 
She always comes to after a few 
minutes. 
come through do what is needed or expected 
Terry really came through for us in 
the end. 
come up to + approach; to equal The job offer didn't come up to her 
expectations. 
come up with + 
produce or create (an idea, a 
plan) 
She came up with a great proposal 
for the new advertising campaign. 
come with + include (an accessory) 
The computer system doesn't 
come with a printer. 
count * in + include Did you count expenses in? 
count on + depend/rely on You can really count on Sarah. 
count * out + exclude 
You can count James out. He 
hates playing poker. 
count * up + add 
Count the change up and see how 
much we have. 
crack down on + 
become tougher on, better 
enforce laws on 
The police have been cracking 
down on drunk driving. 
crack up laugh uncontrollably, laugh a lot 
When I told the joke, they all 
cracked up. 
crack up at + 
laugh uncontrollably about, 
laugh a lot about 
I cracked up at his joke. 
cross * out + 
draw a line through something, 
eliminate 
Why did you cross my name out 
on the list? 
cut down decrease the amount of 
You eat too much fat. You need to 
cut down. 
cut down on + decrease the amount of 
You need to cut down on your fat 
intake. 
cut in interrupt 
She suddenly cut in and delivered 
the news 
cut in on + interrupt 
She cut in on the conversation and 
delivered the news. 
cut * off 
interrupt someone while they 
were speaking 
She cut him off before he said 
something he would regret later. 
cut * off + sever ( with a knife) 
His finger was accidentally cut off 
in an industrial accident. 
cut * out + remove He cut the bone out of the steak. 
cut * out stop an action Cut it out! You're bothering me. 
cut * up + cut into small pieces 
He cut the beef up and put the 
pieces in the soup. 
Phrasal Verb ( D ) 
Phrasal Verb Definition Example 
die away diminish in intensity 
The applause died away after 5 
minutes. 
die down diminish in intensity 
The controversy about the president's 
affair finally died down. 
die off/out become extinct Whales are in danger of dying off. 
disagree with + 
cause to feel sick due to food 
or drink 
Spicy food disagrees with me. 
do away with + abolish 
Some Americans want to do away with 
the death penalty. 
do * over + repeat 
You made many mistakes, so I want 
you to do the report over. 
do without + 
manage without something 
one wants or needs 
I couldn't do without a car in California. 
draw * up + create ( a contract) 
Let's draw an agreement up before we 
go any further with this project. 
dress * down reprimand severely 
The mother dressed her son down for 
skipping school. 
dress down dress casually 
I am dressing down because we're 
going to a barbecue by the beach. 
dress * up + decorate 
You could dress this house up with 
some bright colors 
dress up wear elegant clothes She always dresses up at work. 
drive * back + repulse 
The invaders were driven back by the 
army. 
drop in visit someone unexpectedly Meg dropped in yesterday after dinner. 
drop in on + visit someone unexpectedly 
Let's drop in on Julie since we're driving 
by her house. 
drop out quit an organized activity 
Yuri isn't on the team any more. He 
dropped out. 
drop out of + 
quit an organized activity 
(school) 
It's difficult to get a good job if you drop 
out of high school. 
drop over visit someone casually Drop over any time you feel like talking. 
Phrasal Verb ( E ) 
Phrasal Verb Definition Example 
eat away 
gradually destroy, 
erode 
The heavy rains ate away at the sandstone 
cliffs. 
eat * up + devour Ken ate the cookies up. 
eat in eat inside the home We usually eat in instead of going out for dinner. 
eat out eat outside the home They eat out once a week. 
Phrasal Verb ( F ) 
Phrasal Verb Definition Example 
face up to + 
acknowledge something 
difficult or embarrassing 
I'll never be able to face up to my 
colleagues after getting so drunk last night 
at the work party. 
fall back on + 
be able to use in case of 
emergency 
Yuki can fall back on her degree in biology 
if she doesn't succeed in her acting career. 
fall behind 
go slower than scheduled, 
lag 
Hurry up or you will fall behind! 
fall behind in + 
go slower than scheduled, 
lag 
Cheryl has missed several days of school 
and now she is falling behind in her 
homework. 
fall off decrease 
Interest in the project fell off when they 
realized it wouldn't be profitable. 
fall out with + have an argument with 
I had a falling out with my sister last month 
and we haven't talked to each other since. 
fall through fail to happen 
Unfortunately, my trip to Indonesia fell 
through because I couldn't save enough 
money. 
feel * up + grope 
She sued her boss for sexual harassment 
after he felt her up. 
feel up to + 
have the energy to do 
something 
I don't feel up to going out tonight because I 
had a long day at work. 
figure on + expect 
Where do you figure on living when you 
move to the the U.S.A.? 
figure * out + 
solve something, 
understand 
I finally figured the joke out. Now I 
understand why everybody was laughing. 
figure * up + calculate 
I need to figure my expenses up before I 
give you an estimate. 
fill * in + complete 
Don't forget to fill in all the blanks on the 
application. 
fill in substitute Who is going to fill in while you're gone? 
fill in for + substitute for 
Miguel filled in for me at the meeting 
yesterday because I was sick. 
fill * out + complete (an application) 
I filled out an application to rent the 
apartment last week. 
fill out mature, get breasts 
Now that you're filling out honey, we need 
to get you a bra. 
fill * up + fill to the top Fill the car up with unleaded gas, please. 
find out + discover You will never find out all my secrets! 
find out discover 
Vicky's parents are going to be so mad 
when they find out she got a tattoo. 
fix * up + repair, renovate, remodel My neighbors are fixing their house up. 
Phrasal Verb ( G ) 
Phrasal Verb 
Definition Example 
get * across + cause to be understood 
It's difficult to get humor across in 
another language. 
get ahead make progress 
I can't get ahead even though I work 
two jobs. 
get ahead of + surpass 
You need to work overtime in order to 
get ahead of schedu