A phrasal verb is a verb followed by a preposition or an adverb; the combination creates a meaning different from the original verb.
Alphabetical lists of commonly-used phrasal verbs in English.
Alphabetical List - A
- abide by
- Respect or obey (the law, a decision, a rule...).
'If you want to stay at this school, you must abide by the rules.'
- Respect or obey (the law, a decision, a rule...).
- account for
- Give a reason or an explanation.
'I hope you can account for all the money you spent!'
- Give a reason or an explanation.
- ache for
- Want someone or something very much.
'He was so lonely he ached for the sound of a human voice.'
- Want someone or something very much.
- act on
- Take action as a result of something.
'The police decided to act on the anonymous call they received.'
- Take action as a result of something.
- act out
- Demonstrate something with gestures and actions.
'The children acted out the scene in the classroom.'
- Demonstrate something with gestures and actions.
- act up
- Cause pain or annoyance by functioning badly.
Dad's poor knee is acting up again.'
- Cause pain or annoyance by functioning badly.
- add up
- Make sense; seem reasonable.
'She explained what happened but the details she gave just don't add up.'
- Make sense; seem reasonable.
- adhere to
- Support; follow; act in accordance with.
'All contestants must adhere to the rules.'
- Support; follow; act in accordance with.
- advise against
- Recommend not to do something.
The doctor advised him against carrying heavy loads.
- Recommend not to do something.
- agree with
- Have the same opinion as some else.
'I agree with you. I think she deserves the award too.'
- Have the same opinion as some else.
- aim at
- Direct towards a target.
'The policeman aimed his gun at the hijacker.'
- Direct towards a target.
- allow for
- Take into consideration; include in a calculation.
'It will take longer. You have to allow for heavy traffic at rush hour.'
'We must allow for food expenses too. Let's add 20€ per person.'
- Take into consideration; include in a calculation.
- allude to
- Mention or make reference to something in an indirect way.
'I don't understand. What problem is she alluding to?'
- Mention or make reference to something in an indirect way.
- amount to
- Reach; be equivalent to.
'The total repair work will amount to 1200€.
'His statement amounted to a confession.'
- Reach; be equivalent to.
- angle for
- Try to obtain somethiing by hinting or suggesting.
'From the way he's speaking I suspect Tom is angling for a free ticket.'
- Try to obtain somethiing by hinting or suggesting.
- answer back
- Reply rudely to someone in authority when you are expected to remain silent.
'I'm your teacher. Don't answer back !'
- Reply rudely to someone in authority when you are expected to remain silent.
- answer for
- Be held responsible for something.
'Normally parents have to answer for their children's behaviour.' - Speak on behalf of someone.
'I agree to your proposal, but I can't answer for my associate.'
- Be held responsible for something.
- answer to
- Be responsible to/be controlled by (someone)
'Who do you answer to in your job?'
- Be responsible to/be controlled by (someone)
- appeal to
- Plead or make an earnest request.
'The organisers appealed to the crowd to stay calm.' - Be attractive or interesting.
'The idea of camping in the woods doesn't appeal to me at all.'
- Plead or make an earnest request.
- apply for
- Make a formal request for something (job, permit, loan, etc.)
'When he saw the advertisement he decided to apply for the job.'
- Make a formal request for something (job, permit, loan, etc.)
- arrive at
- Reach (an agreement, a decision, a conclusion)
'It is hoped that they will arrive at an agreement at the end of the meeting.'
- Reach (an agreement, a decision, a conclusion)
- ask after
- Enquire about someone's well-being.
'My mother is always asking after you.'
- Enquire about someone's well-being.
- ask around
- Mention it to people you see or meet.
'I'll ask around and see if anyone has seen your cat.'
- Mention it to people you see or meet.
- ask in
- Invite someone to come inside.
'I couldn't leave her standing outside in the cold so I asked her in.'
- Invite someone to come inside.
- ask out
- Invite someone to lunch, dinner, the cinema ...
'John has asked Mary out several times.'
- Invite someone to lunch, dinner, the cinema ...
- attest to
- Prove to be true; bear witness to
'The number of visitors attest to the popularity of the website.'
- Prove to be true; bear witness to
- avail (oneself) of
- Take advantage of something (an opportunity)
'When the sales begin you should avail yourself of the opportunity and buy that coat.'
- Take advantage of something (an opportunity)
- average out at
- Result in an average(amount)
'The price of lunch averages out at 10€ per person.'
- Result in an average(amount)
More Phrasal Verbs:
This free PDF has fifty frequently used English phrasal verbs, with definitions and over 300 example sentences showing how these phrasal verbs are used in everyday conversation. Some phrasal verbs have the opportunity for you to practise using them in your own sentences, and at the end of the PDF are twenty gap-fill exercises for more practice. Verbs have a similar meaning to the main phrasal verb, but are. At the keginning of many of these verbs you will find a menu box with a list of all the particles.
«ABCDE-FGHI-J-KLM-NO-P-QR-STU-Z»
Phrasal Verb ExercisesEnglish Idioms and Idiomatic Expressions
Please note that British English spelling is used on this website.
Alphabetical lists of English phrasal verbs with meaning and examples.
What is a phrasal verb?
A phrasal verb is a verb followed by a preposition or an adverb; the combination creates a meaning different from the original verb alone.Example : | |
To get = to obtain | I need to get a new battery for my camera. |
To get together = to meet | Why don’t we all get together for lunch one day? |
Phrasal verbs are part of a large group of verbs called “multi-part” or 'multi-word” verbs.
The preposition or adverb that follows the verb is sometimes called a particle.
Phrasal verbs and other multi-word verbs are an important part of the English language.
They are mainly used in spoken English and informal texts.
In academic writing it is preferable to use a formal verb such as, for example, “to postpone” rather than “to put off”.
However, the use of phrasal verbs in formal writing cannot be ruled out, as some of them would be difficult to avoid.
Here are some examples:
account for, bring about, carry out, consist of, dispense with, follow up, phase in, put forward...
They are mainly used in spoken English and informal texts.
In academic writing it is preferable to use a formal verb such as, for example, “to postpone” rather than “to put off”.
However, the use of phrasal verbs in formal writing cannot be ruled out, as some of them would be difficult to avoid.
Here are some examples:
account for, bring about, carry out, consist of, dispense with, follow up, phase in, put forward...
Transitive and intransitive phrasal verbs:
Some phrasal verbs are transitive. (A transitive verb always has an object.)
Example : I made up an excuse. ('Excuse' is the object of the verb.)
Example : I made up an excuse. ('Excuse' is the object of the verb.)
Some phrasal verbs are intransitive . (An intransitive verb does not have an object.)
Example : My car broke down.
Example : My car broke down.
Separable or inseparable phrasal verbs:
Some transitive phrasal verbs are separable. (Object between the verb and the preposition.)
Example : I looked the word up in the dictionary.
Example : I looked the word up in the dictionary.
Some transitive phrasal verbs are inseparable. (Object after the preposition.)
Example : I will look into the matter as soon as possible.
Example : I will look into the matter as soon as possible.
Some transitive phrasal verbscan take an object in both places.
Example : I picked up the book. / I picked the book up.
Example : I picked up the book. / I picked the book up.
However, if the object is a pronoun, it must be placed between the verb and the preposition.
Example : I pickedit up.
Example : I pickedit up.
Below you will find lists of the most commonly-used phrasal verbs in English.
The table below shows the first and last verb in each list.
The table below shows the first and last verb in each list.
Alphabetical lists of Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs A | abide by → average out at |
Phrasal verbs B | back away → butt in (on) |
Phrasal verbs C | call after → cut out |
Phrasal verbs D | deal with → drown out |
Phrasal verbs E-F | ease off → fuss over |
Phrasal verbs G | get about/around → grow up |
Phrasal verbs H | hand back → hurry up |
Phrasal verbs I-J-K | idle away → know of |
Phrasal verbs L | laugh off → lose out to |
Phrasal verbs M-N | make for → note down |
Phrasal verbs O-P-Q | opt out (of) → point out |
Phrasal verbs R-S | reel off → stick with |
Phrasal verbs T | take after → turn up |
Phrasal verbs U-Z | use up → write down |
See below:Commonly-used phrasal verbs | Phrasal verbs by theme | Phrasal verb exercises
Lists of commonly-used phrasal verbs:
- Phrasal verbs with BACK
- Phrasal verbs with BE
- Phrasal verbs with BREAK
- Phrasal verbs with CALL
- Phrasal verbs with COME
- Phrasal verbs with FALL
- Phrasal verbs with GET
- Phrasal verbs with GO
- Phrasal verbs with LOOK
- Phrasal verbs with MAKE
- Phrasal Verbs with PUT
- Phrasal verbs with RUN
- Phrasal verbs with TAKE
Phrasal Verbs by Theme:
Exercises on Phrasal Verbs:
Phrasal verbs - BE (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - BREAK (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - CALL (online ecercise) Phrasal verbs - COME (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - FALL (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - GET (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - GO (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - LOOK (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - MAKE (online exercise) Phrasal verb - PUT (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - RUN (online exercise) Phrasal verbs - TAKE (online exercise) Phrasal verb quiz 1 - mixed (online exercise) Phrasal verb quiz-1 - mixed (printable exercise) Phrasal verb quiz 2 - mixed (online exercise) Phrasal verb quiz-2 - mixed (printable) Phrasal verb quiz 3 - mixed (online exercise) Phrasal verb quiz-3 - mixed (printable) Phrasal verb quiz 4 - mixed (online exercise) Phrasal verb quiz-4 - mixed (printable exercise) Phrasal verb crosswords (online exercise) |
Please note that British English spelling is used on this website.