Phrasal verbs are commonly used in everyday English and often combine a verb with a preposition or adverb to create a new meaning. Let’s see some in action:
Riya woke up early—here, wake up means to stop sleeping. She wanted to work on her project, meaning she was trying to improve or develop it. However, her laptop started acting up, which means it wasn’t functioning properly.
Before things got worse, she decided to back up her files, which means to make a copy of important data. While tidying her room, she came across an old notebook—come across means to find something by chance. To organize her space, she began to clean up her desk, with clean up meaning to make it tidy.
Her phone suddenly went off—go off means to ring or make a sound. Her friend called to ask her to drop by later, which means to visit casually. After finishing her work, she set off for her friend’s house—set off means to start a journey. However, heavy traffic made her pull over, meaning she had to stop her vehicle by the roadside.
Few Important Phrasal Verbs
1. Turn on
Meaning: Start a device
Example: Please turn on the lights.
2. Turn off
Meaning: Stop a device
Example: Turn off the fan before you leave.
3. Look after
Meaning: Take care of someone or something
Example: She looks after her younger brother.
4. Look for
Meaning: Search for something
Example: I am looking for my keys.
5. Give up
Meaning: Stop doing something
Example: Never give up on your dreams.
6. Run out of
Meaning: Have no more of something
Example: We have run out of milk.
7. Get up
Meaning: Rise from bed
Example: I get up at 7 AM every day.
8. Sit down
Meaning: Take a seat
Example: Please sit down and relax.
9. Pick up
Meaning: Lift something or collect someone
Example: I will pick up the package on my way home.
10. Put down
Meaning: Place something on a surface
Example: She put down her bag on the table.
11. Put on
Meaning: Wear something
Example: He put on his jacket before going out.
12. Take off
Meaning: Remove clothing or leave the ground (plane)
Example: The plane will take off in an hour.
13. Break down
Meaning: Stop working (machine)
Example: My car broke down on the way to work.
14. Find out
Meaning: Discover information
Example: I found out about the meeting yesterday.
15. Check in
Meaning: Register at a hotel or airport
Example: We checked in at 2 PM.
16. Check out
Meaning: Leave a hotel or look at something
Example: We will check out of the hotel tomorrow.
17. Come back
Meaning: Return
Example: She will come back from her trip next week.
18. Go out
Meaning: Leave the house for social activities
Example: They went out for dinner.
19. Bring up
Meaning: Raise a topic or a child
Example: She brought up an interesting question.
20. Calm down
Meaning: Relax after being angry
Example: He needs to calm down before we talk to him.
21. Call off
Meaning: Cancel
Example: The meeting was called off due to rain.
22. Carry on
Meaning: Continue
Example: Please carry on with your work.
23. Drop off
Meaning: Leave someone or something somewhere
Example: I will drop you off at the station.
24. Give away
Meaning: Donate or reveal a secret
Example: She gave away her old clothes to charity.
25. Hang out
Meaning: Spend time socially
Example: We like to hang out at the mall.
26. Hold on
Meaning: Wait
Example: Please hold on, I will check for you.
27. Look into
Meaning: Investigate
Example: The police are looking into the case.
28. Take after
Meaning: Resemble a family member
Example: She takes after her mother in looks.
29. Wake up
Meaning: Stop sleeping
Example: I wake up early every morning.
30. Work out
Meaning: Exercise or solve a problem
Example: She works out at the gym every evening.
31. Act up
Meaning: Behave badly or not function properly
Example: The kids started acting up during the class.
32. Back up
Meaning: Support or make a copy
Example: Always back up your important files.
33. Blow out
Meaning: Extinguish something (like a candle)
Example: She blew out the candles on her birthday cake.
34. Break into
Meaning: Enter forcibly
Example: Someone broke into the house last night.
35. Call out
Meaning: Shout or summon someone
Example: He called out her name in the crowd.
36. Catch up
Meaning: Reach the same level or standard as others
Example: She worked hard to catch up with the rest of the team.
37. Clean up
Meaning: Tidy or make something clean
Example: We need to clean up the house before the guests arrive.
38. Come across
Meaning: Find something by chance
Example: I came across an old photo album while cleaning.
39. Cut off
Meaning: Stop the supply of something
Example: The storm cut off the electricity.
40. Do over
Meaning: Repeat something
Example: You need to do the assignment over because it’s incomplete.
41. Drop by
Meaning: Visit someone casually
Example: I will drop by your house later.
42. Fall off
Meaning: Decrease or drop from a higher position
Example: Sales have fallen off this year.
43. Fill up
Meaning: Make something completely full
Example: He filled up the tank with petrol.
44. Get by
Meaning: Manage with difficulty
Example: They are struggling to get by on a small income.
45. Give out
Meaning: Distribute or stop working
Example: The teacher gave out the test papers.
46. Go off
Meaning: Explode or stop functioning
Example: The alarm went off at 6 AM.
47. Hang on
Meaning: Wait or hold something tightly
Example: Hang on for a minute while I check.
48. Look up
Meaning: Search for information
Example: You can look up the word in a dictionary.
49. Make out
Meaning: Understand or distinguish
Example: I couldn’t make out what she was saying.
50. Pass on
Meaning: Give something to someone else
Example: Please pass on the message to him.
51. Pull over
Meaning: Stop a vehicle by the side of the road
Example: The police asked us to pull over.
52. Put out
Meaning: Extinguish something
Example: The firefighters put out the fire quickly.
53. Run after
Meaning: Chase
Example: The dog ran after the ball.
54. Set off
Meaning: Start a journey
Example: They set off early to avoid traffic.
55. Sort out
Meaning: Organize or solve a problem
Example: We need to sort out this issue immediately.
56. Stick to
Meaning: Follow or adhere to something
Example: Stick to the plan and everything will be fine.
57. Take out
Meaning: Remove or take someone on a date
Example: She took out the trash.
58. Turn down
Meaning: Refuse or reduce volume
Example: He turned down the job offer.
59. Wake up
Meaning: Stop sleeping
Example: She wakes up at 6 AM every day.
60. Work on
Meaning: Try to improve or develop
Example: He is working on his communication skills.