Phrasal Verbs

Phrasal Verbs :

Many English verbs occur with one or more prepositions or adverbs where the meaning is not really apparent from the different elements. Here is a list of many of these combinations for the verbs. We have omitted most of the forms considered slang.

Phrasal Verbs in Alphabetical Order :

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Phrasal Verbs : S

See after : take care of
She will see after you until I return.
See off : take leave of
They saw the children off at the airport.
See out : escort to the door
Judy will see you out. Please come again.
See through : understand the true nature
I can see through his plans.
See through : continue
I will see this deal through until they sign on the bottom line.
See through : support in difficult times
My dad saw us through financially the first few years.
See to : attend to
See to the new patient and I will find his chart.
Sell off : get rid of at discount prices
We will be selling off any leftover items at the end of the month.
Sell out : dispose of all
The tickets were all sold out by mid-morning.
Send for : summon
They sent for the police.
Send in : cause to arrive
They sent in dozens of e-mail messages.
Send out : order from
They sent out for two pizzas and some beer.
Send up : confined to jail
He was sent up for five years on a drug charge.
Set about : begin
They set about their business.
Set apart : distinguish
Her qualifications clearly set her apart from the other candidates.
Set aside : reserve
Can you set aside two tickets for us?
Set aside : reject
Their claim was set aside by the service manager.
Set at : attack
The dogs set at the two little boys throwing stones.
Set back : slow down
The family was severely set back by the flood.
Set back : cost a lot
That new part for the car set me back one hundred dollars.
Set down : seat someone
They set the baby down at the table.
Set down : put in writing
He wanted to set down his thoughts before the meeting.
Set down : land a plane
The pilot set down in a grassy field.
Set forth : express
He set forth his principles in his campaign speech.
Set forth : propose
The attorneys set forth the necessary conditions of the tentative agreement.
Set in : insert
His last words are set in stone.
Set in : begin happening
The storm set in overnight.
Set off : initiate
His words set off a rally on Wall Street.
Set off : explode
He set off the bomb.
Set out : undertake
He set out to conquer the world.
Set out : lay out graphically
He set out the new plans for the museum.
Set to : begin
Can we set to work?
Set up : put forward, select
He was set up as the group’s leader.
Set up : assemble
He set up the train set in the living room.
Set up : establish business
What do we still need to set up production?
Set up : arrange
Please set up the glasses on the rear shelf of the cabinet.
Set upon : attack violently
The dogs set upon the cat.
Sew up : complete successfully
We finally sewed up the deal.
Shake down : subject to search
I want you to shake down his apartment for evidence in the case.
Shake hands : greet by clasping one another’s hands
Americans often shake hands when they meet one another.
Shake off : dismiss
He shook off the injury and continued to play.
Shake off : get rid of
How can I shake off this cold?
Shake up : upset
The death of his father really shook him up.
Shake up : rearrange drastically.
He will really shake up the industry.
Shape up : develop
This is shaping up to be a close contest.
Shape up : improve to the standard.
He will have to shape up or he’ll be fired.
Shoot down : bring down
They shot down the enemy aircraft.
Shoot for : aspire
You ought to shoot for the top job.
Shoot up : increase dramatically
The stock prices shot up toward the end of the day.
Shoot up : damage or terrorize a town
The guerrillas shot up the entire village.
Shoot straight : be truthful
I love someone who shoots straight in negotiations.
Shop around : look for bargains
The girls love to shop around at the discount store.
Shop around : look for something better, like a job.
We decided to shop around for a while, before we make a career decision.
Show around : act as a guide
My daughter can show you around the city if you have time.
Show off : display
The goods were shown off to their best advantage.
Show off : behave ostentatiously
He always likes to show off in front of his friends.
Show up : be visible
The cancer showed up clearly on the x-ray.
Show up : arrive
Will they ever show up?
Shut down : stop something from operating
They shut the plant down.
Shut off : stop the flow
Shut off the electricity before you work on the outlet.
Shut off : isolate
He was shut off from all news for two months.
Shut out : prevent from scoring
We were able to shut them out in the last inning of the game.
Shut up : silence, be silent
You should shut up before you get in more trouble.
Sing out : cry out
He sang out from the rear of the crowd.
Sit down : take a seat
Please sit down until you are called.
Sit in : participate
They sat in on the discussions.
Sit in : participate in a sit-in demonstration
The demonstrators intend to sit in at the plant gates tomorrow.
Sit on : consider
Can we sit on this for a day or two and then give you our response?
Sit on : suppress
The defense attorneys sat on the new evidence.
Sit out : stay to the end
We will sit this out until it is over.
Sit out : not participate
I sat out the second match and let my brother play.
Sit up : rise from lying to sitting position
After his nap he sat up in bed.
Sit up : sit with spine erect
Mothers always want you to sit up straight.
Sit up : stay up late
They sat up until past midnight waiting for their daughter to come home.
Sit up : become suddenly alert
He sat up at the sound of shots.
Sleep in : sleep late
I like to sleep in on Sundays.
Sleep out : sleep away from one’s home
The parents are sleeping out this weekend.
Sleep over : spend the night at another home
The girls slept over at their friend's house.
Sleep with : have sexual relations
He slept with her for the first time on their vacation.
Slip away : depart without taking one’s leave
They just slipped away from the party.
Slip out : depart unnoticed
He slipped out for a cigarette break.
Smell out : discover through investigation
They smelled out the criminal after years of investigation.
Sound off : express an opinion
He sounded off about taxes at the town meeting.
Sound out : elicit an opinion
Sound out the board on this matter before Monday.
Speak out : talk freely
He spoke out at our weekly meeting.
Speak up : talk loud enough to be heard
We can’t hear you. Would you please speak up?
Speak up : talk without fear
You must learn to speak up for your rights.
Spell out : read slowly
Try to spell it out if you can't understand the meaning.
Spell out : make clear
Would you please spell out your specific objections?
Spell out : decipher
Let's see if we can spell out the new proposal and write a response.
Spin off : develop from an existing project
They spun off two shows from the original.
Spin out : rotate out of control
The car spun out on the ice when he hit the brakes.
Split up : part company
After ten years of marriage they decided to split up.
Stand by : be ready
Stand by for the commercial.
Stand by : remain uninvolved
He just stood by and watched.
Stand by : remain loyal
She stood by me in my time of trouble.
Stand down : withdraw, cease work
The soldiers on duty stood down at midnight.
Stand for : represent
What do you stand for?
Stand for : put up with
I don’t know why I stand for this nonsense.
Stand in : replace
She stood in for the sick actress.
Stand off : stay at a distance
They stood off and observed from afar.
Stand on : be based on
These findings stand on my previous calculations
Stand on : insist on
There are times when you must stand on ceremony.
Stand out : be conspicuous
She really stood out in the green dress.
Stand out : refuse compliance
He is going to stand out against the tax people.
Stand over : supervise
She stood over him the entire test.
Stand to : prepare to act
The police were ordered to stand to.
Stand up : remain valid
His conclusions stood up to various attacks.
Stand up : miss an appointment
She stood him up again last evening.
Stand up for : defend
I stood up for you in my meeting with the school hoard.
Start out : begin a trip
They started out for Miami at dawn.
Stave off : prevent
They staved off the attackers countless times.
Stay put : remain in place
Now you kids stay put until I get the ice cream.
Slay up : remain awake
They stayed up all night talking about old times.
Stick around : remain
He stuck around for an hour after the press conference to sign autographs.
Stick out : be prominent
He really sticks out in a crowd.
Stick up : to rob at gunpoint
They were stuck up twice in six months.
Stick up for : defend
He always sticks up for his kid brother.
Stop by : visit
They stopped by for coffee after the theater.
Stop off : interrupt a trip
They stopped off in Rome for two days.
Strike down : fell with a blow
He was struck down by a lightning bolt.
Strike out for : begin a course of action
He struck out for California on his own.
Strike out : fail in one’s attempts
He struck out in his attempts to get approval for the highway.
Strike up : start
Strike up the band!
String along : entice by giving false hope
They strung him along for a few weeks before telling him they had hired someone else.
String out : prolong
How long can we string out these talks.
Siring up : hang someone
They strung him up without a trial.
Swear at : verbally abuse
She swore at them like a sailor.
Swear by : rely on
I swear by these calculations.
Swear by : take an oath
Do you swear by the Bible?
Swear in : administer a legal oath
He was sworn in as Governor
Swear off : renounce
I have sworn off cigarettes.
Swear out : process
The detectives swore out a warrant for his arrest.
Sweat out : await anxiously
Some students sweated out the two weeks before grades were mailed home.

Phrasal Verbs in Alphabetical Order

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M
N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

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