Common Phrasal Verbs and Their Meanings

PHRASAL VERBS

Blow out: to (cause to) go out, become extinguished (She blew out all the candles)

Break down: of a machine or motor vehicle. Suddenly cease to function (my car broke down while I was driving)

Blow up: to explode (I saw the plane blowing up)

Come back: to return (she will leave tomorrow, but she’ll come back for holidays)

Check out: going to bed // the moment you leave a place like a hotel

Coming up: (me and your mum are coming up)

Draw in: to cause to take part (This is your fight; don't draw me in)

Drive back: stop trying to reach a person or place and move back

Do without: to forgo, dispense with (We'll just have to do without a car until they fix it)

Drop off: take someone to place and leave them there (I dropped you off on my way from)

Fly over: superficial Reading/run over some documents (I don’t want to read all of this document, so I’m gonna fly over them)

Go over: to repeat, review, examine, (Let's go over the examples one more time)

Get away: to escape, flee (The thieves got away)

Hang out: to spend time in a casual way (we were just hanging out and gossiping)

Look after: to take care of (I can’t go out because I’m looking after my baby brother)

Look around: explore what is near you, in your area (we were looking around this beautiful city)

Look down on SB: underestimate//to think you are better than someone else (she looks down on anyone who hasn't had a university education)

Move out: leave or cause to leave one’s place of residence or work (her landlord has given her a week to move out)

Moving on: to (cause to) pass from one position to another, to change one's place (She fell down and didn't move)

Make up: to form, constitute (Immigrants make up a large part of our school's population)

Pass away: die (she passed away in her sleep)

Plug in: to become connected to a piece of electrical equipment or to the main electricity supply (the keyboard plugs in at the back of the computer)

Run out of: to use up a supply of (We've run out of wood; how will we make a fire?)

Run over: to strike and overturn, with a vehicle

See off: to say goodbye to someone (she saw her son off at the train station)

Speed up: increase speed (can you try and speed things up a bit?)

Set out: start a journey, especially a long journey (they set out on the last stage of their journey)

Try on: to put something see if it fits (she tried a skirt on but she didn't like the way it looked)

Tell SB off: to stop talking to someone (I’m gonna tell you off)

Turn up: to fold (material, etc.) up to alter a garment (to turn up a hem)

Tune in: to adjust a radio or television so as to receive (signals, etc.) (Tune in to our station next week)

Touch down: to land at an airport (the flight touched down on time)

Tell off: To scold severely (it was about time somebody told him off)

Throw up: vomit/ build (I always have to throw up after drinking too much)

Wind up: to (cause to) come to an end or conclusion (The meeting wound up at about 4:30)

Wear out: to make someone feel very tired (you need a holiday or you’ll wear yourself out)

Walk up: approach on foot (a stranger walked up and asked me the way to the beach)