Phrasal Verbs
Here is an extensive list of phrasal verbs to go along with the above explanation! source
The video above includes the song, "Just a Friend (Instrumental Track) [Koraoke In the Style of Biz Markie] by BP Studio Musicians-- I claim no copyrights or ownership of this song.
Separable Phrasal Verbs
The object may come after the following phrasal verbs or it may separate the two parts:
· You have to do this paint job over.
· You have to do over this paint job.
When the object of the following phrasal verbs is a pronoun, the two parts of the phrasal verb must be separated:
· You have to do it over.
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Verb
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Meaning
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Example
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blow up
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explode
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The terrorists tried to blow up the railroad station.
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bring up
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mention a topic
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My mother brought up that little matter of my prison record again.
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bring up
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raise children
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It isn't easy to bring up children nowadays.
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call off
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cancel
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They called off this afternoon's meeting
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do over
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repeat a job
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Do this homework over.
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fill out
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complete a form
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Fill out this application form and mail it in.
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fill up
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fill to capacity
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She filled up the grocery cart with free food.
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find out
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discover
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My sister found out that her husband had been planning a surprise party for her.
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give away
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give something to someone else for free
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The filling station was giving away free gas.
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give back
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return an object
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My brother borrowed my car. I have a feeling he's not about to give it back.
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hand in
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submit something (assignment)
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The students handed in their papers and left the room.
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hang up
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put something on hook or receiver
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She hung up the phone before she hung up her clothes.
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hold up
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delay
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I hate to hold up the meeting, but I have to go to the bathroom.
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hold up (2)
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rob
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Three masked gunmen held up the Security Bank this afternoon.
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leave out
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omit
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You left out the part about the police chase down Asylum Avenue.
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look over
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examine, check
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The lawyers looked over the papers carefully before questioning the witness. (They looked them overcarefully.)
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look up
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search in a list
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You've misspelled this word again. You'd better look itup.
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make up
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invent a story or lie
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She knew she was in trouble, so she made up a story about going to the movies with her friends.
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make out
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hear, understand
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He was so far away, we really couldn't make out what he was saying.
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pick out
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choose
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There were three men in the line-up. She picked out the guy she thought had stolen her purse.
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pick up
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lift something off something else
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The crane picked up the entire house. (Watch them pick it up.)
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point out
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call attention to
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As we drove through Paris, Francoise pointed out the major historical sites.
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put away
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save or store
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We put away money for our retirement. She put away the cereal boxes.
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put off
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postpone
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We asked the boss to put off the meeting until tomorrow. (Please put it off for another day.)
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put on
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put clothing on the body
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I put on a sweater and a jacket. (I put them on quickly.)
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put out
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extinguish
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The firefighters put out the house fire before it could spread. (They put it out quickly.)
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read over
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peruse
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I read over the homework, but couldn't make any sense of it.
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set up
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to arrange, begin
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My wife set up the living room exactly the way she wanted it. She set it up.
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take down
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make a written note
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These are your instructions. Write them down before you forget.
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take off
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remove clothing
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It was so hot that I had to take off my shirt.
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talk over
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discuss
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We have serious problems here. Let's talk them over like adults.
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throw away
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discard
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That's a lot of money! Don't just throw it away.
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try on
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put clothing on to see if it fits
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She tried on fifteen dresses before she found one she liked.
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try out
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test
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I tried out four cars before I could find one that pleased me.
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turn down
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lower volume
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Your radio is driving me crazy! Please turn it down.
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turn down (2)
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reject
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He applied for a promotion twice this year, but he was turned down both times.
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turn up
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raise the volume
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Grandpa couldn't hear, so he turned up his hearing aid.
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turn off
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switch off electricity
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We turned off the lights before anyone could see us.
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turn off (2)
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repulse
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It was a disgusting movie. It really turned me off.
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turn on
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switch on the electricity
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Turn on the CD player so we can dance.
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use up
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exhaust, use completely
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The gang members used up all the money and went out to rob some more banks.
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Inseparable Phrasal Verbs (Transitive)
With the following phrasal verbs, the lexical part of the verb (the part of the phrasal verb that carries the "verb-meaning") cannot be separated from the prepositions (or other parts) that accompany it: "Who will look after my estate when I'm gone?" |
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Verb
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Meaning
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Example
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call on
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ask to recite in class
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The teacher called on students in the back row.
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call on (2)
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visit
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The old minister continued to call on his sick parishioners.
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get over
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recover from sickness or disappointment
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I got over the flu, but I don't know if I'll ever get over my broken heart.
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go over
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review
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The students went over the material before the exam. They should have gone over it twice.
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go through
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use up; consume
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They country went through most of its coal reserves in one year. Did he go through all his money already?
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look after
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take care of
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My mother promised to look after my dog while I was gone.
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look into
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investigate
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The police will look into the possibilities of embezzlement.
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run across
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find by chance
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I ran across my old roommate at the college reunion.
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run into
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meet
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Carlos ran into his English professor in the hallway.
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take after
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resemble
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My second son seems to take after his mother.
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wait on
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serve
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It seemed strange to see my old boss wait on tables.
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Three-Word Phrasal Verbs (Transitive)
With the following phrasal verbs, you will find three parts: "My brother dropped out of school before he could graduate." |
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Verb
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Meaning
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Example
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break in on
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interrupt (a conversation)
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I was talking to Mom on the phone when the operator broke in on our call.
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catch up with
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keep abreast
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After our month-long trip, it was time to catch up with the neighbors and the news around town.
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check up on
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examine, investigate
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The boys promised to check up on the condition of the summer house from time to time.
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come up with
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to contribute (suggestion, money)
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After years of giving nothing, the old parishioner was able to come up with a thousand-dollar donation.
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cut down on
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curtail (expenses)
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We tried to cut down on the money we were spending on entertainment.
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drop out of
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leave school
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I hope none of my students drop out of school this semester.
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get along with
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have a good relationship with
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I found it very hard to get along with my brother when we were young.
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get away with
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escape blame
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Janik cheated on the exam and then tried to get away with it.
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get rid of
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eliminate
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The citizens tried to get rid of their corrupt mayor in the recent election.
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get through with
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finish
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When will you ever get through with that program?
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keep up with
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maintain pace with
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It's hard to keep up with the Joneses when you lose your job!
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look forward to
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anticipate with pleasure
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I always look forward to the beginning of a new semester.
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look down on
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despise
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It's typical of a jingoistic country that the citizens look down on their geographical neighbors.
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look in on
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visit (somebody)
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We were going to look in on my brother-in-law, but he wasn't home.
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look out for
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be careful, anticipate
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Good instructors will look out for early signs of failure in their students
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look up to
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respect
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First-graders really look up to their teachers.
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make sure of
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verify
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Make sure of the student's identity before you let him into the classroom.
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put up with
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tolerate
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The teacher had to put up with a great deal of nonsense from the new students.
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run out of
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exhaust supply
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The runners ran out of energy before the end of the race.
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take care of
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be responsible for
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My oldest sister took care of us younger children after Mom died.
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talk back to
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answer impolitely
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The star player talked back to the coach and was thrown off the team.
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think back on
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recall
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I often think back on my childhood with great pleasure.
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walk out on
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abandon
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Her husband walked out on her and their three children.
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Intransitive Phrasal Verbs
The following phrasal verbs are not followed by an object: "Once you leave home, you can never really go back again." |
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Verb
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Meaning
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Example
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break down
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stop functioning
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That old Jeep had a tendency to break down just when I needed it the most.
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catch on
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become popular
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Popular songs seem to catch on in California first and then spread eastward.
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come back
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return to a place
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Father promised that we would never come back to this horrible place.
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come in
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enter
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They tried to come in through the back door, but it was locked.
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come to
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regain consciousness
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He was hit on the head very hard, but after several minutes, he started to come to again.
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come over
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to visit
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The children promised to come over, but they never do.
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drop by
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visit without appointment
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We used to just drop by, but they were never home, so we stopped doing that.
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eat out
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dine in a restaurant
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When we visited Paris, we loved eating out in the sidewalk cafes.
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get by
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survive
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Uncle Heine didn't have much money, but he always seemed to get by without borrowing money from relatives.
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get up
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arise
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Grandmother tried to get up, but the couch was too low, and she couldn't make it on her own.
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go back
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return to a place
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It's hard to imagine that we will ever go back to Lithuania.
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go on
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continue
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He would finish one Dickens novel and then just go on to the next.
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go on (2)
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happen
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The cops heard all the noise and stopped to see what was going on.
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grow up
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get older
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Charles grew up to be a lot like his father.
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keep away
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remain at a distance
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The judge warned the stalker to keep away from his victim's home.
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keep on (with gerund)
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continue with the same
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He tried to keep on singing long after his voice was ruined.
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pass out
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lose consciousness, faint
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He had drunk too much; he passed out on the sidewalk outside the bar.
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show off
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demonstrate haughtily
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Whenever he sat down at the piano, we knew he was going to show off.
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show up
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arrive
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Day after day, Efrain showed up for class twenty minutes late.
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wake up
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arouse from sleep
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I woke up when the rooster crowed.
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