Phrasal Verbs Flashcards
Cut in
To interrupt someone when they are speaking.
“I was about to ask that girl on a date, but her friend cut in and I lost the chance.”
Ask somebody out
invite on a date
Brian asked Judy out to dinner and a movie
Ask around
ask many people the same question
I asked around but nobody has seen my wallet
add up to something
equal
Your purchases add up to $205.32
back somebody/something up
1- support
My wife backed me up over my decision to quit my job.
2-to show that an explanation or belief is probably true
All the evidence backs up her story
3- to make a copy of information stored on a computer
Make sure you back up.
4- if traffic backs up, or if it is backed up, the vehicles are in a long line and waiting to continue moving
Traffic is backing up on all out-of-town routes.
Cars were backed up for miles.
5- Reverse
You’ll have to back up your car so that I can get out
6-to make a car go backwards
See if you can back up a bit further.
Blow up
explode
The racing car blew up after it crashed into the fence
add air
We have to blow 50 balloons up for the party.
break down
get upset
The woman broke down when the police told her that her son had died.
stop functioning (vehicle, machine) Our car broke down at the side of the highway in the snowstorm.
divide into smaller parts
Our teacher broke the final project down into three separate parts
Break In
force entry to a building
Somebody broke in last night and stole our stereo.
The firemen had to break INTO the room to rescue the children.
interrupt
The TV station broke in to report the news of the president’s death.
wear something a few times so that it doesn’t look/feel new
I need to break these shoes in before we run next week.
break up
end a relationship
My boyfriend and I broke up before I moved to America.
start laughing (informal) The kids just broke up as soon as the clown started talking.
Break out
escape
The prisoners broke out of jail when the guards weren’t looking.
OUT IN
develop a skin condition
I broke OUT IN a rash after our camping trip.
bring somebody down
make unhappy
This sad music is bringing me down.
Bring UP
raise a child
My grandparents brought me up after my parents died.
start talking about a subject
My mother walks out of the room when my father brings up sports.
vomit
He drank so much that he brought his dinner up in the toilet.
call around
phone many different places/people
We called around but we weren’t able to find the car part we needed.
call somebody back
return a phone call
I called the company back but the offices were closed for the weekend.
call something off
cancel
Jason called the wedding off because he wasn’t in love with his fiancé
call on somebody
ask for an answer or opinion
The professor called on me for question 1.
to ask someone to do something:
She called on Americans to be more tolerant of each other.
to come to see someone; visit:
She went to the hospital to call on a sick friend.
call somebody up
Phone
Give me your phone number and I will call you up when we are in town.
Calm down
relax after being angry
You are still mad. You need to calm down before you drive the car.
not care for somebody/ something
not like (formal) I don't care for his behaviour. I don’t much care for chocolate.
catch up
get to the same point as somebody else
You’ll have to run faster than that if you want to catch up with Marty.
to do something that should have been done before
The deadline’s tomorrow.
How are we ever going to catch up in time?
a meeting at which people discuss what has happened since the last time that they met
I’m seeing my boss for a catch-up next week.
Come over tomorrow and we can catch up.
I’ll catch up with you another time, Kevin.
It’ll give them a chance to talk and catch up with all their news.
I just want to go home and catch UP ON some sleep.
check somebody/ something out
Look at carefully, investigate
The company checks out all new employees.
look at (informal)
Check out the crazy hair on that guy!
Check it out!
cheer up
become or make happier
She cheered up when she heard the good news.
I brought you some flowers to cheer you up.
chip in
to interrupt a conversation in order to say something:
I’ll start and you can all chip in with your comments.
contribute something as one’s share of a joint activity, cost, etc.
If everyone chips in we can get the kitchen painted by noon.
clean something up
tidy, clean
Please clean up your bedroom before you go outside.
come across something
find unexpectedly
I came across these old photos when I was tidying the closet.
come apart
separate
The top and bottom come apart if you pull hard enough.
come down with something
become sick
My nephew came down with chicken pox this weekend.
come forward
volunteer for a task or to give evidence
The woman came forward with her husband’s finger prints.
The National Blood Service is anxious for more donors to come forward.
Police said that several people had come forward with information about the attack.
come from someplace
originate in
The art of origami comes from Asia.
(used for emphasizing)
Coming from him, that’s praise indeed!
count on somebody/ something
rely on
I am counting on you to make dinner while I am out.
The whole team was counting on me, and I let them down.
cross something out
draw a line through
Please cross out your old address and write your new one.
cut back on something
consume less, especially money
(also cut DOWN)
My doctor wants me to cut back on sweets and fatty foods.
It’s time we cut back a little.
cut something down
make something fall to the ground
We had to cut the old tree in our yard down after the storm.
How can you cut down the risk of cancer?
The doctor advised him to cut down his working hours.
cut in
interrupt
Your father cut in while I was dancing with your uncle.
pull in too closely in front of another vehicle
The bus driver got angry when that car cut in.
start operating (of an engine or electrical device) The air conditioner cuts in when the temperature gets to 22°C.
be at odds
to disagree:
They’re at odds over the funding of the project.
Her version of events was at odds with the police report.
An adviser said there was no reason why the two countries should remain at odds.
He was at odds with his Prime Minister
go off
If a light or a machine goes off, it stops working:
The lights went off in several villages because of the storm.
If a bomb goes off, it explodes:
The bomb went off at midday.
If a gun goes off, it fires:
His gun went off accidentally.
If food or drink goes off, it is not good to eat or drink any more because it is too old:
This bacon smells a bit funny - do you think it’s gone off?
These bananas are going off, eat them!
If a warning device goes off, it starts to ring loudly or make a loud noise:
The alarm should go off automatically as soon as smoke is detected.
Didn’t you hear your alarm clock going off this morning?
Name after/for
to give someone or something the same name as another person or thing:
Paul was named after his grandfather.
She told us about his brother, Apollo, born in 1969 and named for the US astronauts’ mission to the moon.
cut something-somebody off
remove with something sharp
The doctors cut off his leg because it was severely injured.
stop providing
The phone company cut off our phone because we didn’t pay the bill.
take out of a will
My grandparents cut my father off when he remarried.
take time out
to stop doing what one is doing in order to do something else for a while usually used with from
She took time out from her career to raise her children
cut something out
remove part of something (usually with scissors and paper)
I cut this ad out of the newspaper.
do somebody/ something over
beat up, ransack (informal)
He’s lucky to be alive. His shop was done over by a street gang.
do again
My teacher wants me to do my essay over because she doesn’t like my topic.
do away with something
discard
It’s time to do away with all of these old tax records.
do something 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 back
to move into a lower position in a race or competition
Andrea dropped back to third place when she fell off her bike.
to move more slowly than other people so that you are behind them
Alex dropped back to let me pass.
drop in/ by/ over
come without an appointment
I might drop in/by/over for tea sometime this week.
drop somebody/ something off
take somebody/ something somewhere and leave them/it there
I have to drop my sister off at work before I come over.
drop out
to quit a class, school etc
I dropped out of Science because it was too difficult.
eat out
eat at a restaurant
I don’t feel like cooking tonight. Let’s eat out.
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.
(of hair, teeth) become loose and unattached
His hair started to fall out when he was only 35.
figure something out
understand, find the answer
I need to figure out how to fit the piano and the bookshelf in this room.
fill something in/out
to write information in blanks, as on a form (BrE)
Please fill in the form with your name, address, and phone number.
The form must be filled out in capital letters
fill something up
fill to the top
I always fill the water jug up when it is empty.
find out
discover
We tried to keep the time of the party a secret, but Samantha found it out
We don’t know where he lives. How can we find out?
get something across/ over
communicate, make understandable
I tried to get my point across/over to the judge but she wouldn’t listen.
get along/on
like each other
I was surprised how well my new girlfriend and my sister got along/on.
get around
have mobility
My grandfather can get around fine in his new wheelchair.
if news gets around, a lot of people hear it
It didn’t take long for news of his resignation to get around.
get away
go on a vacation
We worked so hard this year that we had to get away for a week.
get away with something
do without being noticed or punished
Jason always gets away with cheating in his maths tests.
get back
return
We got back from our vacation last week.
receive something you had before
Liz finally got her Science notes back from my room-mate.
get back at somebody
retaliate, take revenge
My sister got back at me for stealing her shoes. She stole my favourite hat.
get back into something
become interested in something again
I finally got back into my novel and finished it.
get on something
step onto a vehicle
We’re going to freeze out here if you don’t let us get on the bus.
get over something
recover from an illness, loss, difficulty
I just got over the flu and now my sister has it.
overcome a problem
The company will have to close if it can’t get over the new regulations.
get round to
finally find time to do
I finally got round to reading that book you gave me.
I don’t know when I am going to get round to writing the thank you cards.
get together
meet (usually for social reasons)
Let’s get together for a BBQ this weekend.
get up
get out of bed
I got up early today to study for my exam.
stand
You should get up and give the elderly man your seat.
