Phrasal verbs are the backbone of natural spoken English — native speakers use them constantly, and recognizing their patterns is the key to understanding and producing authentic language.
A phrasal verb is a combination of a verb and one or two particles (a preposition, an adverb, or both) that together create a meaning different from — and often unrelated to — the individual words. "Give up," for example, does not mean to give something in an upward direction; it means to quit or surrender. This idiomatic quality is what makes phrasal verbs both challenging and essential.
Native English speakers use phrasal verbs constantly in conversation, informal writing, and even professional settings. Learners who avoid them sound stilted and formal; learners who master them sound natural and fluent.
Particles in phrasal verbs often carry consistent general meanings. Recognizing these patterns helps you guess the meaning of new phrasal verbs.
| Particle | General Meanings | Examples |
|---|
| up | Completion, increase, improvement, fullness | use up, eat up, speed up, cheer up, save up, clean up, give up |
| down | Decrease, failure, recording, calming | calm down, break down, write down, slow down, cut down |
| out | Completion, outward movement, elimination, discovery | find out, run out, carry out, work out, figure out, sort out |
| off | Separation, departure, cancellation, completion | take off, put off, call off, cut off, show off, set off |
| on | Continuation, connection, progress | carry on, go on, hold on, put on, move on, keep on |
| in | Inward movement, inclusion, involvement | fit in, hand in, fill in, join in, check in, give in |
| back | Return, reversal | come back, get back, pay back, look back, hold back |
| over | Examination, movement above, repetition | go over, look over, think over, come over, get over |
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Examples | Sep? |
|---|
| wake up | stop sleeping; become alert | "I wake up at 7 a.m." / "The noise woke me up." | Sep |
| get up | rise from bed; stand up | "She gets up before sunrise." / "Get up — you'll be late!" | Insep |
| put on | dress yourself in something; start a device | "Put on your coat." / "Put it on." / "Can you put on some music?" | Sep |
| take off | remove clothing; plane leaves ground | "Take off your shoes." / "The flight takes off at noon." | Sep/Insep |
| look for | search for | "I'm looking for my keys." / "What are you looking for?" | Insep |
| give up | quit; stop trying; surrender | "He gave up smoking." / "Don't give up — keep trying!" | Sep |
| carry on | continue | "Carry on with your work." / "Sorry for interrupting — carry on." | Insep |
| cut down on | reduce the amount of | "You should cut down on sugar." / "I'm cutting down on coffee." | Insep |
| run out of | have no more of something | "We've run out of milk." / "I ran out of time during the exam." | Insep |
| set up | establish, arrange, prepare | "They set up a new company." / "Set it up for tomorrow." | Sep |
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Examples | Sep? |
|---|
| get along with | have a good relationship with | "Do you get along with your neighbors?" / "They get along well." | Insep |
| hang out | spend time socially | "We hang out every weekend." / "Want to hang out tonight?" | Insep |
| fall out with | have an argument and stop being friends | "She fell out with her sister over money." | Insep |
| make up | reconcile after an argument; invent a story | "They argued but made up quickly." / "He made up an excuse." | Sep |
| turn up | arrive, often unexpectedly; appear | "He turned up two hours late." / "She turned up at the party." | Insep |
| let down | disappoint someone | "He let me down when he cancelled." / "Don't let them down." | Sep |
| catch up with | reach the same level; update each other | "Let's catch up over coffee." / "I need to catch up on my reading." | Insep |
| look up to | admire and respect someone | "Children look up to their teachers." / "I've always looked up to her." | Insep |
| put up with | tolerate, endure | "I can't put up with this noise." / "She puts up with a lot." | Insep |
| run into | meet someone by chance | "I ran into an old friend at the airport." | Insep |
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Examples | Sep? |
|---|
| hand in | submit work to a person in authority | "Hand in your essays by Friday." / "Have you handed it in?" | Sep |
| find out | discover information | "I found out he was lying." / "Find out what time it starts." | Sep |
| come up with | think of; produce an idea or solution | "She came up with a brilliant solution." / "Can you come up with a plan?" | Insep |
| go over | review, examine carefully | "Let's go over the report one more time." / "Go over your notes." | Insep |
| put off | postpone; delay; discourage | "Don't put off doing the task." / "The rain put me off going." | Sep |
| take on | accept a responsibility or challenge; employ | "She took on more work." / "The company took on 20 new staff." | Sep |
| point out | draw attention to; indicate | "He pointed out a mistake in my work." / "Can you point it out?" | Sep |
| back up | support someone; make a copy of data | "Back up your files regularly." / "She backed me up in the meeting." | Sep |
| look into | investigate | "The police are looking into the matter." / "I'll look into it." | Insep |
| draw up | prepare a document or plan | "They drew up a new contract." / "Draw up a schedule." | Sep |
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Examples | Sep? |
|---|
| break down | stop functioning; have an emotional collapse; analyze | "My car broke down on the highway." / "She broke down crying." | Insep/Sep |
| deal with | handle; manage a situation or person | "How do you deal with stress?" / "I'll deal with this problem." | Insep |
| sort out | resolve a problem; organize | "We need to sort out this misunderstanding." / "Sort it out!" | Sep |
| work out | calculate; solve; exercise; happen successfully | "Work out the total." / "Everything worked out fine." / "She works out every day." | Sep/Insep |
| get over | recover from illness, shock, or disappointment | "It took months to get over the breakup." / "Have you got over your cold?" | Insep |
| figure out | understand; find a solution to | "I can't figure out how this works." / "Figure it out yourself." | Sep |
| get through | survive a difficult time; make contact | "She got through the hardest year of her life." / "I can't get through to him." | Insep |
| hold on | wait; grip something tightly | "Hold on — I need a minute." / "Hold on to the railing." | Insep |
| take over | assume control of something | "The company was taken over by a rival." / "She took over as manager." | Sep |
| bring up | raise a topic; raise a child | "He brought up an interesting point." / "She was brought up in Spain." | Sep |
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|
| show off | display abilities to impress others | "He always shows off when there are guests." |
| calm down | become or make less agitated | "Calm down — it's not that serious." |
| check in | register arrival at a hotel or airport | "We checked in at 3 p.m." |
| check out | leave a hotel; investigate; look at | "Check out this amazing video!" / "We checked out at noon." |
| fill in / fill out | complete a form | "Fill in this form, please." / "Fill out the application online." |
| look after | take care of | "Can you look after my dog while I'm away?" |
| look forward to | anticipate with pleasure | "I look forward to hearing from you." (always + gerund) |
| make up for | compensate for | "I'll make up for missing the meeting by sending the minutes." |
| set off | begin a journey; trigger an alarm | "We set off at dawn." / "The smoke set off the alarm." |
| turn down | refuse; reduce volume/heat | "She turned down the job offer." / "Turn down the music." |