List of Other Common Phrasal Verbs

List of other common phrasal verbs in English with meaning.

Phrasal Verbs List (A)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with A.

Account for: Explain by relating circumstances
Account for: Be the primary cause of
Account for: Constitute in amount or portion
Account for: Destroy or put out of action
Account to: Answer to; to be responsible to
Admire to: Be enthusiastic about doing
Adopt out: Send a son or daughter away to live in another country
Age out: Become too old for an activity, program or institution; to become too mature for a behavior
Aim at: Design for a particular audience
Aim at/to: Intend to do or achieve
Allow for: Take into account when making plans
Attend to: Diligently work on; to pay attention to

Phrasal Verbs List (B)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with B.

Bail out: Rescue, especially financially
Bail out: Leave (or not attend at all) a place or a situation
Bail out: Sell all or part of one’s holdings in stocks, real estate, a business, etc.
Ball out: Cry intensely; to sob or weep
Ball up: Crush into a ball shape
Ball up: Coil up into a ball
Ball up: Hunch over and pull in one’s arms and legs
Balls up: Do something badly. To ruin a job
Bear on: Be relevant to
Bear out: Corroborate, prove, or confirm; to demonstrate
Bear upon: Be relevant to
Bear with: Be patient with
Believe in: Ascribe existence to
Believe in: Believe that (something) is right or desirable
Believe in: Have confidence in the ability or power of
Block off: Obstruct
Block off: Book, set aside
Block out: Prevent from entering or penetrating
Block out: Prevent (a thought) from entering one’s mind
Boil down: Become reduced
Boil off: Remove by boiling
Boil off: Be removes by boiling
Boil over: Boil to such an extent as to overflow its container
Boil up: Cook or prepare by boiling
Book in: Reserve an appointment for
Bottom out: Touch or drag along the ground
Branch out: Expand in the manner of branches
Branch out: Attempt something new or different, but related
Brighten up: Make cheerful
Bubble over: Be very enthusiastic, or highly excited
Bubble over: Be successful on a modest scale, without yet being fully established
Buck up: Become encouraged, reinvigorated, or cheerful
Buck up: Encourage or refresh; to hearten
Buck up: Pass on to higher authority for resolution
Buckle down: Put forth the needed effort
Buckle up: Fasten one’s seat belt or safety belt
Build up: Accumulate, to pile up, to increase in stages
Build up: Strengthen
Bump into: Collide with
Bump into: Cause (a thing) to collide with
Bump into: Meet by chance
Burn down: Cause (a structure) to burn to nothing
Burn down: Burn completely, so that nothing remains
Burn out: Become extinguished due to lack of fuel
Burn out: Tire due to overwork
Burn up: Catch fire and burn until destroyed
Burn up: Anger; to annoy

Phrasal Verbs List (C)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with C.

Calm down: Become less excited, intense, or angry
Cancel out: Neutralize the effect of something
Catch on: Begin to understand; to realize
Catch on: Become popular; to become commonplace; to become the standard
Catch up: Entangle
Catch up: Be brought up to date with news
Catch up: Bring someone else up to date with the news
Catch up: Reach something that had been ahead
Cheer up: Become happy
Cheer up: Make someone happy
Chew out: Lecture, scold, reprimand, or rebuke
Chew up: Chew so as to make something pulpy
Chicken out: Shy away from a daring task
Chill out: Relax or take time out; to calm down
Chill out: Hang out; spend time together with another person or group
Clean out: Clean, especially to tidy by removing the contents
Clean out: Empty completely; to remove all money or possessions from
Clean up: Make an area or a thing clean; to pick up a mess; to tidy
Clean up: Become clean, handsome, smart in appearance
Clean up: Make a large profit
Clear away: Leave, disappear
Clear out: Completely empty
Clear out: Remove or eject (from), especially forcibly
Clear out: Leave quickly
Clear out: Become empty
Close down: Stop trading as a business
Close down: Surround someone, as to impede their movement
Close in on: Enclose around; to tighten or shrink; to collapse
Close in on: Catch up with in a chase; to near the end of a pursuit
Close in on: Near a goal or completion
Close off: Seal or block the entrance to a road, an area, or a building so that people cannot enter
Close up: Move people closer together
Close up: Shut a building or a business for a period of time
Close up: Heal a cut or other wound
Clock in: Begin working time, especially by punching in
Clock in: Be measured at
Clock off: End work
Clock out: End work; to officially record a time when one terminates a period of work
Clock out: Officially record a work-termination time for
Consist in: Have the thing mentioned as the only or most important part
Consist of: Be composed or made up of something
Cool down: Become cooler, to be reduced in temperature
Cool down: Cause the temperature of an item to decrease
Cool down: Become less agitated
Cool down: Cause to become less agitated
Count down: Announce the passage of time to a precisely timed expected event
Count down: Await a precisely timed expected event
Count in: Include (someone) in an activity, etc.
Count in: Do a countdown before the start of something, especially a musical performance
Count off: Count (a series of numbers) aloud
Count on: Rely on, trust, or expect
Count out: Exclude; to dismiss from participation or eligibility
Count out: Enumerate items while organizing or transferring them.
Count up: Add to get a total
Crop out: Come to light; to be manifest; to appear
Cross off: Finish; to regard something as complete
Cross out: Strike out; to draw a line through
Cross over: Pass from one side or area, physical or abstract, to another
Cross over: Die
Cry off: Cancel something that one has previously arranged with someone
Cry out for: Be in urgent need (of)

Phrasal Verbs List (D)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with D.

Deal with: Handle verbally or in some form of artistic expression; to address or discuss as a subject
Deal with: Take action with respect to (someone or something)
Deal with: Consider, as an example
Deal with: Come to terms with; to overcome any difficulties presented by
Deal with: Be in charge of, act on, or dispose of
Deal with: Behave in a certain way towards
Do for: Doom; to bring about the demise of
Do in: Kill or end
Do in: Exhaust, to tire out
Do up: Fasten (a piece of clothing, etc.); to tighten
Do up: Redecorate
Do up: Execute a task or performance
Do up: Pack together and envelop; to pack up
Do without: Manage despite the lack of
Draw in: Attract
Draw in: Get someone involved
Draw in: Approach
Draw on: Advance, continue; to move or pass slowly or continuously, as under a pulling force.
Draw on: Approach, come nearer, as evening
Draw out: Make something last for more time than is necessary
Draw out: Improve a losing hand to a winning hand by receiving additional cards
Draw up: Compose a document, especially one having a standard form
Draw up: Arrange in order or formation
Draw up: Cause to come to a halt
Draw up: Come to a halt
Drink in: Absorb; to be completely attentive to
Drink to: Raise one’s glass as a toast
Drink up: Finish one’s drink
Drive at: Mean, signify; to aim or tend to a point
Drive away: Depart by driving a vehicle
Drive away: Force someone or something to leave
Dry out: Have excess water evaporate or be otherwise removed.
Dry up: Become dry (often of weather); to lose water
Dry up: Cause to become dry
Dry up: Deprive someone of (something vital)
Dry up: Cease to exist; to disappear
Dry up: Manually dry dishes
Dry up: Stop talking, to forget what one was going to say

Phrasal Verbs List (E)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with E.

Eat away: Erode or corrode gradually
Eat into: Consume gradually, especially by erosion
Eat out: Perform cunnilingus or anilingus
Eat up: Consume completely
Eat up: Accept or believe entirely, immediately, and without questioning

Phrasal Verbs List (F)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with F.

Find out: Discover, as by asking or investigating
Find out: Discover or expose (someone) as disobedient, dishonest, etc.
Find out: Uncover a weakness (in someone)
Finish off: Finish completely
Finish off: Kill
Finish up: Complete the last details of a task
Finish with: Put aside, break all relations with, or reject finally
Finish with: Complete; to complete use of
Fit in: Be physically capable of going into a space
Fit in: Be confident in a social situation
Fit into: Be of the right size and shape to be placed in a location
Fit into: Be of similar cultural or social status as the members of a group of people
Fit up: Conspire to incriminate falsely a presumably innocent person
Fit up: Furnish with suitable things; to prepare; to fit out
Fix up: Provide (someone) (with something); to furnish
Fix up: Repair or refurbish
Fix up: Prepare or provide (something)
Force out: Cause something to be ejected

Phrasal Verbs List (G)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with G.

Gear up: Prepare for an activity
Grow up: Mature and become an adult
Grow up: Start to develop; to flourish
Grow up: Stop acting as or like a child

Phrasal Verbs List (H-K)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with H & K.

Hand in: Give something to a responsible person
Hand off: Pass or transfer
Hand over: Relinquish control or possession of something to someone
Hand round: Pass something to everyone in a group
Hash out: Work through the details of something; especially to work through difficulties
Head off: Begin moving away
Head off: Intercept
Head off: Avoid some usually negative consequence
Knuckle down: Get to work; to focus on a task

Phrasal Verbs List (L)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with L.

Lead in: Introduce, to mark the beginning of something, especially in music
Lead off: Be the first batter of an inning
Lean on: Put pressure on; to attempt to compel a person to do something; to exert influence on
Leave behind: Abandon
Leave behind: Forget about
Leave behind: Not live longer than; to be survived by
Leave behind: Leave (a trace of something)
Leave behind: Outdo; to progress faster than (someone or something else)
Leave behind: Pass
Leave off: Desist; to cease
Leave out: Omit, to not include, to neglect to mention
Leave out: Allow a portion to remain unused or unconsumed
Lie around: Do nothing in particular, to be idle
Lie around: Be in an unknown place
Lie before: Put oneself at the whim of, to bow down to
Lie down: Assume a reclining position
Lie down: Be lazy or remiss
Lie in: Stay in bed (longer than usual)
Lie low: Conceal oneself; to remain hidden
Lift up: Lighten the mood of someone
Light up: Show an increase in activity or mood
Light up: Light a cigarette, pipe etc.
Lighten up: Become less serious and more cheerful or casual; to relax
Liven up: Improve a person’s mood by making them more energetic
Liven up: Become more happy, energetic or positive
Lock in: Fix the value of something potentially variable
Lock out: Prevent from entering a place, particularly oneself, inadvertently
Lock out: Prevent from accessing a data structure
Log in: Gain access to a computer system, usually by providing a previously agreed upon username and password
Log on: Visit a Web site; construed with to
Log out: Exit a user account in a computer system
Luck out: Experience great luck; to be extremely fortunate or lucky
Luck out: Run out of luck

Phrasal Verbs List (M-N)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with M & N.

Meet up: Meet somebody, by arrangement
Miss out: Miss an experience or lose an opportunity, etc. that should not be missed
Mix up: Mix or blend thoroughly and completely
Mix up: Prepare something from ingredients that are mixed
Mix up: Confuse or reverse
Mix up: Combine thoroughly
Mix up: Become involved with, especially socially or romantically
Monkey around: Act foolishly
Narrow down: Make more specific

Phrasal Verbs List (O-P)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with O & P.

Open up: Open
Open up: Reveal oneself; to become communicative
Open up: Commence firing weapons
Pack away: Store away, place out of the way, or stash, especially for the longer term
Pack away: To eat (a great deal of food)
Pack off: Send away, with belongings, for a long time
Pack out: Fill with spectators
Pack up: Move one’s residence
Pay back: Pay an amount of money owed to another, to repay
Pay back: Exact revenge
Pay for: Exchange for, especially money for goods or services
Pay for: Be punished or held accountable for
Pay off: Bribe, especially to deter oversight
Pay off: Become worthwhile; to produce a net benefit
Pay off: Pay back; to repay
Pay off: Pay back (repay, pay off) the entirety of a loan, thereby effecting the release of a lien on
Phase in: Introduce something little by little
Phase out: Remove or relinquish the use of something little by little
Plan on: Expect; to anticipate future actions based on
Plough back: Reinvest profits into a business
Plough back: Continue with a task despite it being menial, difficult, or boring
Plough through: Persevere with an activity of consuming something, both literally and figuratively
Plough through: Forcefully make a passage to move through
Point out: Identify among a group of similar subjects
Point out: Tell, remind, indicate
Pour out: Serve a drink into a cup or glass
Pour out: Leave a place quickly, and in large numbers
Pour out: Talk volubly and deeply. Usually implies telling the truth
Press out: Obtain from a substance, as by mechanical action

Phrasal Verbs List (Q-R)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with Q & R.

Quiet down: Become quieter
Quiet down: Make someone or something become quieter
Quiet down: Diminish in intensity
Read in: Accept as input
Read off: Dictate from a list
Read out: Read something and say the words to inform other people
Read out: Read some data and inform the person using the device
Rely on: Be confident in
Rely on: Be dependent upon
Roll around: Move about on the ground while rotating and turning one’s body
Roll around: Be considered, without much coherence, in someone’s mind
Roll around: Indulge in sexual intercourse (with)
Roll around: Return to a prior state
Roll around: Postpone
Roll in: Arrive casually at a place
Roll in: Come in an unstoppable flow
Roll out: Deploy or release (a new film or software, etc.)
Roll over: Make a rolling motion or turn
Roll over: Cause a rolling motion or turn
Roll over: Give in to
Roll up: Make something into a particular shape, especially cylindrical or fold-like
Roll up: Arrive by vehicle, usually by car
Round out: Make more complete by adding details
Rule in: Consider (something) as a possible option among others
Rule out: Make a decision in an official capacity regarding some matter
Rule out: Reject an option from a list of possibilities
Rule out: Make something impossible
Rush off: Produce in great haste

Phrasal Verbs List (S)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with S.

Scale back: Make a reduction in the amount, extent, etc. of something
Scare off: Cause (something) to flee by frightening it
Scare off: Deter
Scarf down: Eat something quickly
Sell down: Become less by being sold
Sell out: Sell all of a product that is in stock
Sell out: Abandon or betray one’s supporters or principles to seek profit
Sell out: Betray a person, usually a close friend or family member, for personal gain
Settle down: Become quiet and calm after a period of disturbance or restlessness
Settle down: Get comfortable with one’s new accommodation or circumstances
Settle for: Accept or allow something, especially something not entirely desirable
Settle in: Get comfortable or established, as in a new place
Settle on: Make a decision or selection; to decide, arrange, or agree on
Shake off: Remove (something attached to, on or clinging to an object) by shaking
Shake off: Dissociate oneself from
Shake off: Lose someone who is tracking you
Shake off: Rid oneself of a malady or its symptoms
Shake up: Agitate by shaking
Shake up: Upset or distress
Shake up: Reorganize, to make reforms in
Shade up: Improve; to correct one’s bad habits or behavior
Shade up: Take shape; to transform into or become
Show in: Lead or direct someone to an enclosed space, usually a room
Show off: Exhibit the best attributes of something
Show off: Attract attention to for the purpose of bragging or personal exhibitionism
Show off: Show someone the important parts of something (a building, town etc.)
Show up: Appear, arrive, or attend, especially suddenly or erratically
Show up: Make visible or expose faults and deficiencies in, usually by comparison
Shower with: Give to someone an abundance of (something)
Shut down: Close, terminate, or end
Shut down: Turn off or stop
Shut in: Lock in
Shut out: Hide from sight
Shut up: Of a person, to stop talking or (of a person or thing) making noise
Shut up: I don’t believe it!, no way!
Sign off: Log off; to stop using a computer, radio, etc., especially to stop talking
Sign off: Cease broadcasting a radio or television signal, usually at the end of a broadcasting day
Sign off: Give one’s official approval to something for which it is needed
Sign out: Sign one’s name as an indication that one is leaving some location
Sign up: Add a name to the list of people who are participating in something
Sign up: Add one’s own name to the list of people who are participating in something
Sign up: Agree to purchase some good or service
Sing along: Sing some music while someone else is singing
Sink in: Become clear in one’s mind
Sit back: Recline while still in a seated position, with one’s back on the frame of the seat
Sit down: Assume a low or sunken position
Sit on: Block, suppress, restrain
Sit on: Restrain (a person)
Sit on: Take no action on
Sit on: Be a member of
Sit out: Decline to participate; particularly, to decline to dance
Sit through: Unwillingly stay seated until the end of an event
Sit up: Assume a sitting position from a position lying down
Sit up: Sit erect
Sit up: Show sudden interest or surprise
Sit up: Not go to bed (notionally remaining in a sitting position)
Skip out: Shirk; to avoid attending or to leave early, especially without permission
Sleep in: Sleep late; to go on sleeping past one’s customary or planned hour
Sleep on: Postpone (a decision) at least overnight
Sleep with: Share a bed or bedroom with
Slide off: Leave a place, a meeting, etc., without being noticed; to slip away, slip off
Slow down: Decelerate
Smoke out: Drive out (something or somebody) using smoke
Smoke out: Expose (something or somebody)
Smoke out: Offer to smoke cannabis with someone; to smoke cannabis with someone
Smoke out: Smoke too much (usually cannabis); to become too stoned
Smoke out: Run out of tobacco or cannabis; to be emptied of tobacco or cannabis
Smooth down: Render smooth, to remove roughness from
Sort out: Clarify by reviewing mentally
Sort out: Arrange
Sort out: Fix, as a problem
Sort out: Organise or separate into groups, as a collection of items, so as to make tidy
Sort out: Separate from the remainder of a group; often construed with from
Sort out: Attack physically
Sort out: Provide (somebody) with a necessity, or a solution to a problem
Sound off: Hold forth about something in an opinionated manner
Speed up: Accelerate; to increase speed
Speed up: Increase the speed of something; to make something go faster
Spell out: Form (a word) from its component letters
Spell out: Explain in clear and simple terms
Split up: Cease to be together, break apart from the group
Split up: Separate, disassociate, cause to come apart
Spread out: Become further apart
Spread out: Place items further apart
Sump up: Summarize
Start afresh: Start or restart doing something from the beginning or with a clean sheet
Start off: Begin
Start off: Set out on a trip
Start off: Begin one’s life, or occupation
Start off: Begin again; to return to the beginning
Start up: Rise suddenly
Start up: Begin to operate
Start up: Begin
Stay in: Remain at home, to not leave one’s home
Stay on: Continue in a place or situation, while others leave
Stay up: Remain in a raised or upright position
Stay up: Remain awake, to not go to bed
Stay up: Maintain an erection
Step back: Stop what one is doing and evaluate the current situation
Step back: Prevent oneself from becoming emotionally involved in a certain situation
Step on it: Drive fast; to step on the accelerator
Step on it: Act quickly
Step up: Increase speed or rate
Stick around: Stay; to linger; to remain
Stick at: Continue practising (a skill), even it is difficult
Stick down: Cause to stick to a surface
Stick down: Stick to a surface
Stick down: Write something casually
Stick it out: Persist or continue
Stick out: Pprotrude; to extend beyond
Stick out: Be prominent, noticeable, or obtrusive
Stick to: Persist; to continue (to use, do, etc.
Stick up: Put up by sticking
Stick up: Rob at gunpoint
Stick up: Be prominent; to point upwards
Stick up: Speak or act in defence
Stick up for: Defend or protect
Stick with: Follow or adhere to
Stick with: Follow loyally
Stick with: Persist in using or employing
Stick with: Endure in the memory of’

Phrasal Verbs List (T)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with T.

Talk down: Negotiate a lower price
Talk into: Convince (someone) by talking and suggesting
Talk out of: Talk to someone in order to dissuade them from doing something
Talk over: Persuade someone; to talk around
Talk over: Interrupt the speech of with one’s own speech
Talk through: Tell someone step by step how to do something
Talk through: Comfort someone as they endure trauma; to help someone consider an issue or see certain aspects of it
Think back: Think about a time or experience; to recall
Think over: Ponder or reflect on a subject
Think up: Create in one’s mind; to invent
Tip off: Alert or inform someone, especially confidentially
Try out: Undergo a test before being selected; to audition

Phrasal Verbs List (U-W-Y)

List of other commonly used phrasal verbs that start with U, W & Y.

Used to: Accustomed to, tolerant or accepting of
Wait for: Wait until the specified event occurs
Wait for: Await the arrival of
Wait for: Wait for an event
Wait for: Wait for a person to do something
Wait for: Serve someone
Wait up: Wait
Wait upon: Wait on; to serve
Wake up: Awaken somebody
Wake up: Become more aware of a real-life situation; to concentrate on the matter in hand
Warm up: Make an audience enthusiastic or animated before a show
Warm up: Become warmer
Warm up: Prepare for executing an already-learned activity by a limited amount of additional practice
Watch out: Be aware or conscious; to look closely or carefully; to use caution
Watch over: Guard and protect
Wipe away: Remove or erase with a wiping motion
Wipe down: Clean the exterior surface of an object, typically by hand using a damp dishcloth or other cleaning cloth
Wipe up: Dry utensils, dishes etc. that have been washed
Wipe up: Completely remove spilled liquid or solids, typically by hand using a dishcloth
Wipe up: Clean thoroughly, particularly with a dishcloth or rag
Wipe up: Thoroughly defeat an opponent
Write in: Write a letter to, e.g. a publication
Write in: Fill in something required, by writing
Write off: Assign a low value to something
Write out: Write at full length or in expanded form
Yield up: Give something against one’s will
Yield up: Disclose something hidden

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