PHRASALS - (UNITS 1 to 4) Flashcards
to take action as a result of advice, information, etc.”
Act on
“Acting on information from a member of the public, the police raided the club.
behave awkwardly / badly
ACT UP
“The kids started acting up.”
to defend yourself against criticism
to speak rudely to somebody in authority, especially when they are criticizing you or telling you to do something
defenderse respondiendo
o cuando criticás o responder mal a una autoridad
answer sb back (informal)
"”Don’t answer back!
Stop answering your mother back!””
to accept responsibility or blame for something
responder por (hacerse responsable por)
answer for
coll: answer for the mistakes made
be under the command of sb
to have to explain your actions or decisions to somebody
have the characteristics described
tener que responder a alguien superior (cumplir con lo que pide)
answer to
coll: answer to the boss
cease to oppose
echarse atrás, dar marcha atrás, echar marcha atrás
back down
coll: back down (on/from something)
“despite the evidence, he refused to back down”
withdraw from
to decide that you are no longer going to take part in something that has been agreed
DESVINCULARSE (arrepentido)
back out of
coll: back out (of something)
ex: “He lost confidence and backed out of the deal at the last minute.”
“support
to support somebody/something; to say that what somebody says, etc. is true
to provide support for somebody/something
(computing) to prepare a second copy of a file, program, etc. that can be used if the main one fails or needs extra support”
back up
coll: “back sb up - to back up sth (a project, homework, a plan)”
ex: “I’ll back you up if they don’t believe you.
The writer doesn’t back up his opinions with examples.
two doctors backed up by a team of nurses
The rebels backed up their demands with threats.
It’s a good idea to back up your files onto a memory stick.”
be relevant to
bear on
“The Minister’s statement does not bear on this case in any way”
be patient
bear with
“If you can bear with me a little longer, I’ll try to explain the reasons behind out actions”
- to stop working
- to stop being successful / to fail bc of problems or disagreements
- To lose or cause (someone) to lose strength or the ability to resist or fight.
- to separate into smaller units
- To fail
Break down
coll: a car, a washing machine, an elevator
sth breaks down into categories
ex:
“The government’s argument broke down completely when new evidence came to light.”
“The prisoner finally broke down under intensive questioning.”
“Our plans to travel around the world broke down, we’re not able to go”
- to begin suddenly (also in a rash or sweat on the skin).
- To begin happening suddenly; (of war, fighting or other unpleasant events) to start suddenly
- to escape
Break out
coll: to break out from _________
ex: “They had escaped to America shortly before war broke out in 1939.”
“Fighting had broken out between rival groups of fans.”
“Fire broke out during the night.”
“An argument can break out”
- to end a relationship
- to divide into smaller parts
- (of a crowd or gathering) to be dispersed
- school term ends and holidays begin (inf. BrE)
Break up
coll: to break up a relationship
to break up a cookie so as to give a little piece to everyone
ex: “they were together for 2 years but then they broke up”
“school breaks up on the 12 of december”
to make sth happen
Bring about
coll: bring about sth
progress
changes
a revolution
the downfall of a government
a crises
- to force yourself through something that is holding you back
- To find a way of dealing with a problem or a situation that limits what you can do.
- to go higher than a particular level
- to become visible
Break through
coll: to break through a barrier
to break through a 2 million barrier
ex: Protesters broke through the barriers.
The organization is totally committed to breaking through the barriers of poverty.
Some protesters managed to break through the police cordon.
Soon the sun would break through the mist.
I tried hard to break through his silent mood.
Sales have finally broken through the $1 million barrier.
to break through the glass ceiling
After days of rain, the sun finally broke through.
support or confirm sth. to support the truth of something, or to support someone’s statement or claim
bear out
ex: “this assumption is not borne out by any evidence”
“If you tell them what happened I will bear you out (on it).”
to compare the advantages and disadvantages of something
balance sth against sth
explode
blow up
coll: a bomb blows up
to depend on
bank on
coll: to bank on a person / a fact
ex: “he may come tomorrow but don’t bank on it
improve, go over sth
mejorar, repasar algo
brush up on
coll: to brush up on a language / a skill
ex: “I must brush up on my Italian if I wanna go to Italy in the summer”
to stop and be forgotten
acabarse y ser olvidado
Blow over
I thought that after a few days the argument would blow over.
to happen to; be the fate of
become of
If you ask what became of someone or something, you want to know where they are and what happened to them: “Whatever became of that parcel you sent?”
to accumulate
build up
coll: to build up garbage.
When a patient has pneumonia, a lot of fluid builds up in the lungs and doctors have to drain it (and also treat the infection with antibiotics).
Fluid is built up in the stomach.
to make a reservation (for)
book up
to destoy sth completely by fire
If a fire _________ ____________, it becomes weaker and has smaller flames
quemar algo / iscinerar algo
Burn down
coll: a fire / campfire burns down (after the wood run out)
- destroy, get rid of sth by burning (ver diferencia con burn down). To be destroyed by heat.
- (of an engine): use fuel
- to have a fever (intransitive)
- to be very angry”
Burn up
visit briefly
call at
coll: to call at a place / sb’s house
ex: “i’ll call at the travel agency to collect our tickets”
to ask to return
call back
coll: to call sb back to a place
ex: “As soon as John reached Viena he was called back to Paris”
require
call for
“His condition calls for immediate medical attention”
to cancel
call off
“The meeting was called off due to the chairman’s illness”
to consult
call in
coll: call in sb
“you’d better call in a solicitor before writing your will”
- to conscript, to make somebody do their training in the army, etc. or fight in a war.
- to make a phone call to sb.
- to give somebody the opportunity to play in a sports team, especially for their country
CALL UP
“my cousing was called up at the age of 19 and died in Vietnam a year later”
to cause to do on strike
CALL OUT
“the union has called out its members to try to get a better deal”
to run away
CLEAR OFF
ex: “the bully cleared off when he saw the teacher approaching”
to get rid of unwanted things
clear out
“They cleared out the garage to make room for their new car”
to brighten up (of the weather)
clear up
“it’s been raining all morning but it seems to be clearing up now”
to remove, tidy
clear away
“if you cleared away all these books, we’d have room to eat”
- to manage to get something
- to receive something
Come by
ex: “How did you come by this painting? It’s a Picasso, you know.”
“Jobs are hard to come by these days.”
“How did you come by that scratch on your cheek?”
to change your opinion about something, or agree to an idea
Come round to
“they’ve come round to our way of thinking at last”
to understand
Come across
coll: to come across an idea
1 - be inherited
2 - (of a situation or outcome) be dependent on a specified factor
ser heredado / o ser recibido de una generación anterior
depender de un factor específico
Come down to (sb)
ex: “This diamond ring came down to me from my great-granmother”
“it came down to her word against Guy’s”
to become conscious again after an accident or operation
volver a estar consciente.
COME ROUND
“After she was hit on her head by the cricket ball, it took her several minutes to come round / to”
to be a particular total when numbers or amounts are added together (ver ejemplo)
Come to
"”How much did the supermarket bill come to this week?
That comes to £25.””
to reach the usual or necessary standard
Come up to
ex: “Did the new play at the National Theatre come up to your expectations?”
(of plants) to appear above the soil
Come up
ex: “Those tomato seeds I planted in the spring haven’t come up yet.”
to be left money by somebody who has died
Come into
“He came into several thousand pounds when his grandfather died”
1 - used in orders to tell somebody to hurry or to try harder
2 - (of an actor) to walk onto the stage
3 - (of a player) to join a team during a game
4 - (informal) to improve or develop in the way you want (ESTE ES EL QUE TOMAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
5 - used to show that you know what somebody has said is not correct
6 - (usually used in the progressive tenses) (of an illness or a mood) to begin
7 - (of a TV programme, etc.) to start
8 - to begin to operate
Come on
ejemplos:
1 - Come on! Try once more.
3 - Wilson came on for Kane ten minutes before the end of the game.
4 - The students are coming on very well in Maths this term.
5 - Oh, come on—you know that isn’t true!
6 - I can feel a cold coming on.
I think there’s rain coming on.
7 - What time does the news come on?
8 - Set the oven to come on at six.
to become fashionable
Come in
ex: “Long hai for men is coming in again. More and more men are starting to wear their hair long.”
to affect somebody
when sth is going on to a person, sth ______ ______ to that person
Come over
I don’t know what’s come over him; he’s been acting very oddly lately.
(of a person’s skin) break out in spots or a similar condition.
Come out in
“He came out in a rash after eating a kilo of strawberries”
1- to be produced or published (LO TOMAN!!!!!!!!!!!!)
2 - to be shown clearly
3 - when words ______________, they are spoken
4 - to say publicly whether you agree or disagree with something
5 - The rain stopped and the sun _______________.
6- (of news, the truth, etc.) to become known (LO TOMAN!!!)
Come out
ejemplos:
1 - Her latest novel is coming out in paperback soon
2 - Her best qualities come out in a crisis
3 - I tried to say ‘I love you,’ but the words wouldn’t come out.
4 - He came out against the plan.
4 - In her speech, the senator came out in favour of a change in the law.
5 - The rain stopped and the sun came out.
6 - It came out that Sue’s husband had been arrested for speeding.
[no passive] to find or produce an answer, a sum of money, etc.
Come up with
ex: “We don’t know yet how we’ll solve the problem but I’m sure someone will come up with a solution soon”
“She came up with a new idea for increasing sales.”
to offer your help, services, etc.
Come forward
coll: volunteers / witnesses come forward
ex:
“After the flood, hundreds of volunteers came forward with offers of assistance”
“Several people came forward with information.”
to get better after a serious illness or to avoid serious injury
Come through (sth)
ex: “Most of the companies which managed to come though the economic crisis are now operating very successfully”
to happen
Come about
ex:
“I’m not sure how the accident came about but I suspect somebody was being careless”
“Can you tell me how the accident came about?”
trade in sth
deal in
“He deals in antique furniture and paintings”
tackle a problem, cope with
deal with
(informal) to stop doing or having something; to make something end.
Get rid of; abolish
do away with
“He thinks it’s time we did away with the monarchy.”
criticise sb/sth
do (sth/sb) down
ex: “they’re always moaning and doing British industry down”
“(informal) to be in a very bad situation; to be certain to fail
be in serious trouble”
be done for
“Unless we start making some sales, we’re done for.”
deprive of / cheat
deprive someone of something in an underhand or unfair way.
clue: out
do out of
ex: “she was always chasing him about money, as if he was trying to do her out of her share”
to be fastened / to fasten
do up
“The skirt does up at the back.can you do up my dress, please?”
need/ would like.
do with
“I’m thirsty. I could do with a cup of tea.”
imply, suggest
drive at
“What were you driving at when you said you might not see Mark for some time?”
Manage in spite of lack of sth
do without
“She can’t do without a secretary.”
“Surely you can do it without sugar in your coffee for once?”
to reduce the size, amount or number of something
Cut down on (page 60)
ex: “We need to cut the article down to 1 000 words.
The doctor told him to cut down on his drinking.”
“1) to be understood
2) to make a particular impression
Come across
replace sb
reemplazar a alguien
stand in for sb
Your teacher had an emergency so I will stand in for her for this class.
to become, or make something become, thin or no longer able to be used, usually because it has been used too much
wear out (page 56)
give something to a person in authority for their attention.
hand in (pages 13 and 32)
We handed in a letter of protest.
be demeaning. to not be good enough for someone
be beneath sb
Office work of any description he felt was beneath him.
Would you be willing to give an interview, or is that something you think is beneath you?
“be hostile to sb
to criticize someone”
be down on
As a vegetarian, Paul is down on ppl who eat meat
be about to receive punishment / trouble
be in for
be ill (with disease)
be down with
Half the staff are down with the flu this week
“(informal) take an interest in sb
to be interested in something in an active way”
be into
She doesn’t eat junk food; she’s into healthy food
“1) cease to want or be interested in sth
2) have come loose, detached from sth
3) stay away from work / school
4) cancel
5) be bad, unhealthy (usually with food)”
be off
our dog has been off its food for days now.
be shown on tv, at the cinema, etc
be on
do you know what’s been on the tv?
1) do
2) depend on
be up to
I don’t know what he’s been up to but he looks very embarrassed
to interrupt when someone else is talking
BREAK IN
Perhaps you could hold your questions until the end of the lecture rather than keep breaking in.
to end a relationship or to stop communication
BREAK OFF
Both countries have broken off diplomatic relations.
to be accepted in a group
be in with
Susan gets all the perks because she’s in with the administration.
to interrupt a conversation in order to say something
CHIP IN
to succeed in doing sth difficult
BRING OFF
bring a plan/deal/project off
to mention a subject or start to talk about it
raise a matter for discussion or consideration.
bring up (sth)
Look after a child until it is an adult.
Bring up (sb)
1) to produce sth that will be sold to the public
2) To reveal
BRING OUT
1) a product / a magazine
2) a quality / the best or worst in sb
to help SB regain consciousness
BRING ROUND
to make something develop, usually something unpleasant
to make crops, fruit, etc grow well
BRING ON
He was suffering from stress brought on by overwork.
The cold weather has brought on his cold again.
to introduce a new law
BRING IN
They want to bring in a bill to limit arms exports.
to become fashionable or popular:
CATCH ON
to continue to exist in a different situation
CARRY OVER
Attitudes learned at home carry over into the playground.
to succeed in doing something that most people would find difficult
CARRY OFF
The actress carried off the performance without a hitch.
1) to continue moving
2) (informal) to argue or complain noisily
CARRY ON
1) Carry on with your work, please. There’s no time to waste.
2) She’s always carrying on like a lunatic when she loses something.
to do something that you have said you will do or have been asked to do
to complete a task
CARRY OUT
to complete something successfully
CARRY THROUGH
to help somebody to survive a difficult situation.
(see difference with see through)
CARRY SB THROUGH
to reach the same quality or standard as someone or something else
to reach somebody who is ahead by going faster
CATCH UP WITH
bill sb
CHARGE TO SB
Publicly accuse sb of committing a wrong deed
CHARGE WITH
