Phrasal verbs (Cụm động từ)

A
ask someone out: invite on a date
Brian asked Judy out to dinner and a movie.

ask around : ask many people the same question
I asked around but nobody has seen my wallet.

add up to something: equal
Your purchases add up to $205.32.

B

back something up: reverse
You'll have to back up your car so that I can get out.

back someone up: support
My wife backed me up over my decision to quit my job.

blow up : explode
The racing car blew up after it crashed into the fence.

blow something up: add air
We have to blow 50 balloons up for the party.

break down: stop functioning (vehicle, machine)
Our car broke down at the side of the highway in the snowstorm.

break down : get upset
The woman broke down when the police told her that her son had died.

break something down: divide into smaller parts
Our teacher broke the final project down into three separate parts.

break in: force entry to a building
Somebody broke in last night and stole our stereo.

break into something: enter forcibly
The firemen had to break into the room to rescue the children.

break something in : wear something a few times so that it doesn't look/feel new
I need to break these shoes in before we run next week.

break in: interrupt
The TV station broke in to report the news of the president's death.

break up: end a relationship
My boyfriend and I broke up before I moved to America.

break up: start laughing (informal)
The kids just broke up as soon as the clown started talking.

break out: escape
The prisoners broke out of jail when the guards weren't looking.

break out something: develop a skin condition
I broke out in a rash after our camping trip.

bring someone down: make unhappy
This sad music is bringing me down.

bring someone up: raise a child
My grandparents brought me up after my parents died.

bring something up: start talking about a subject
My mother walks out of the room when my father brings up sports.

bring something up: vomit
He drank so much that he brought his dinner up in the toilet.

call around: phone many different places/people
We called around but we weren't able to find the car part we needed.

call someone back: return a phone call
I called the company back but the offices were closed for the weekend.

call something off: cancel
Jason called the wedding off because he wasn't in love with his fiancé.

call on someone: ask for an answer or opinion
The professor called on me for question 1.

call on someone: visit someone
We called on you last night but you weren't home.

call someone up: phone
Give me your phone number and I will call you up when we are in town.

calm down: relax after being angry
You are still mad. You need to calm down before you drive the car.

catch up: get to the same point as someone else
You'll have to run faster than that if you want to catch up with Marty.

check in: arrive and register at a hotel or airport
We will get the hotel keys when we check in.

check out: leave a hotel
You have to check out of the hotel before 11:00 AM.

check someone/something out: look at carefully, investigate
The company checks out all new employees.

check out someone/something: look at (informal)
Check out the crazy hair on that guy!

cheer up: become happier
She cheered up when she heard the good news.

cheer someone up: make happier
I brought you some flowers to cheer you up.

chip in: help
If everyone chips in we can get the kitchen painted by noon.

clean something up: tidy, clean
Please clean up your bedroom before you go outside.

come across something: find unexpectedly
I came across these old photos when I was tidying the closet.

come apart: separate
The top and bottom come apart if you pull hard enough.
come down withsomething become sick My nephew came down with chicken pox this weekend.
come forward :volunteer for a task or to give evidence
The woman came forward with her husband's finger prints.

come from somewhere: originate in
The art of origami comes from Asia.

count on someone/something: rely on
I am counting on you to make dinner while I am out.

cross something out: draw a line through
Please cross out your old address and write your new one.

cut back on something: consume less
My doctor wants me to cut back on sweets and fatty foods.

cut something down: make something fall to the ground
We had to cut the old tree in our yard down after the storm.

cut in: interrupt
Your father cut in while I was dancing with your uncle.

cut in: pull in too closely in front of another vehicle
The bus driver got angry when that car cut in.

cut in: start operating (of an engine or electrical device)
The air conditioner cuts in when the temperature gets to 22ºC.

cut something off: remove with something sharp
The doctors cut off his leg because it was severely injured.

cut something off: stop providing
The phone company cut off our phone because we didn't pay the bill.

cut someone off: take out of a will
My grandparents cut my father off when he remarried.

cut something out: remove part of something (usually with scissors and paper)
I cut this ad out of the newspaper

do someone/something over beat up, ransack (Br.E., informal)
He's lucky to be alive. His shop was done over by a street gang.

do something over: do again (N.Amer.)
My teacher wants me to do my essay over because she doesn't like my topic.

do away with something: discard
It's time to do away with all of these old tax records.

do something up: fasten, close
Do your coat up before you go outside. It's snowing!

dress up: wear nice clothing
It's a fancy restaurant so we have to dress up.

drop back: move back in a position/group
Andrea dropped back to third place when she fell off her bike.

drop in/by/over: come without an appointment
I might drop in/by/over for tea some time this week.

drop someone/something off: take someone/something somewhere and leave them/it there
I have to drop my sister off at work before I come over.

drop out: quit a class, school etc
I dropped out of Science because it was too difficult.

E

eat out: eat at a restaurant
I don't feel like cooking tonight. Let's eat out.

end up: eventually reach/do/decide
We ended up renting a movie instead of going to the theatre.

F

fall apart: break into pieces
My new dress fell apart in the washing machine.

fall down: fall to the ground
The picture that you hung up last night fell down this morning.

fall out: separate from an interior
The money must have fallen out of my pocket.

fall out: (of hair, teeth) become loose and unattached
His hair started to fall out when he was only 35.

figure something out: understand, find the answer
I need to figure out how to fit the piano and the bookshelf in this room.

fill something in: to write information in blanks (Br.E.)
Please fill in the form with your name, address, and phone number.

fill something out: to write information in blanks (N.Amer.)
The form must be filled out in capital letters.

fill something up: fill to the top
I always fill the water jug up when it is empty.

find out: discover
We don't know where he lives. How can we find out?

find something out: discover
We tried to keep the time of the party a secret, but Samantha found it out.

get something across/over: communicate, make understandable
I tried to get my point across/over to the judge but she wouldn't listen.

get along/on: like each other
I was surprised how well my new girlfriend and my sister got along/on.

get around: have mobility
My grandfather can get around fine in his new wheelchair.

get away: go on a vacation
We worked so hard this year that we had to get away for a week.

get away with something: do without being noticed or punished
Jason always gets away with cheating in his maths tests.

get back: return
We got back from our vacation last week.

get something back: receive something
You had before Liz finally got her Science notes back from my room-mate.

get back at someone: retaliate, take revenge
My sister got back at me for stealing her shoes. She stole my favourite hat.

get back into something: become interested in something again
I finally got back into my novel and finished it.

get on something: step onto a vehicle
We're going to freeze out here if you don't let us get on the bus.

get over something: recover from an illness, loss, difficulty
I just got over the flu and now my sister has it.

get over something: overcome a problem
The company will have to close if it can't get over the new regulations.

get round to something: finally find time to do (N.Amer.: get around to something)
I don't know when I am going to get round to writing the thank you cards.

get together: meet (usually for social reasons)
Let's get together for a BBQ this weekend.

get up: get out of bed
I got up early today to study for my exam.

get up: stand
You should get up and give the elderly man your seat.

give someone away: reveal hidden information about someone
His wife gave him away to the police.

give someone away: take the bride to the altar
My father gave me away at my wedding.

give something away: ruin a secret
My little sister gave the surprise party away by accident.

give something away: give something to someone for free
The library was giving away old books on Friday.

give something back: return a borrowed item
I have to give these skates back to Franz before his hockey game.

give in: reluctantly stop fighting or arguing
My boyfriend didn't want to go to the ballet, but he finally gave in.

give something out: give to many people (usually at no cost)
They were giving out free perfume samples at the department store.

give something up: quit a habit
I am giving up smoking as of January 1st.

give up: stop trying
My maths homework was too difficult so I gave up.

go after someone: follow someone
My brother tried to go after the thief in his car.

go after something: try to achieve something
I went after my dream and now I am a published writer.

go against someone: compete, oppose
We are going against the best soccer team in the city tonight.

go ahead: start, proceed
Please go ahead and eat before the food gets cold.

go back: return to a place
I have to go back home and get my lunch.

go out: leave home to go on a social event
We're going out for dinner tonight.

go out with someone: date
Jesse has been going out with Luke since they met last winter.

go over something: review
Please go over your answers before you submit your test.

go over: visit someone nearby
I haven't seen Tina for a long time. I think I'll go over for an hour or two.

go without something: suffer lack or deprivation
When I was young, we went without winter boots.

grow apart: stop being friends over time
My best friend and I grew apart after she changed schools.

grow back: regrow
My roses grew back this summer.

grow up: become an adult
When Jack grows up he wants to be a fireman.

grow out of something: get too big for
Elizabeth needs a new pair of shoes because she has grown out of her old ones.

grow into something: grow big enough to fit
This bike is too big for him now, but he should grow into it by next year.

H

hand something down: give something used to someone else
I handed my old comic books down to my little cousin.

hand something in: submit
I have to hand in my essay by Friday.

hand something out: to distribute to a group of people
We will hand out the invitations at the door.

hand something over: give (usually unwillingly)
The police asked the man to hand over his wallet and his weapons.

hang in: stay positive (N.Amer., informal)
Hang in there. I'm sure you'll find a job very soon.

hang on: wait a short time (informal)
Hang on while I grab my coat and shoes!

hang out: spend time relaxing (informal)
Instead of going to the party we are just going to hang out at my place.

hang up: end a phone call
He didn't say goodbye before he hung up.

hold someone/something: back prevent from doing/going
I had to hold my dog back because there was a cat in the park.

hold something back: hide an emotion
Jamie held back his tears at his grandfather's funeral.

hold on: wait a short time
Please hold on while I transfer you to the Sales Department.

hold onto someone/something: hold firmly using your hands or arms
Hold onto your hat because it's very windy outside.

hold someone/something up: rob
A man in a black mask held the bank up this morning.

K

keep on doing something: continue doing
Keep on stirring until the liquid comes to a boil.

keep something from someone: not tell
We kept our relationship from our parents for two years.

keep someone/something out: stop from entering
Try to keep the wet dog out of the living room.

keep something up: continue at the same rate
If you keep those results up you will get into a great college.

L

let someone down: fail to support or help, disappoint
I need you to be on time. Don't let me down this time.

let someone in: allow to enter
Can you let the cat in before you go to school?

look after someone/something: take care of
I have to look after my sick grandmother.

look down on someone: think less of, consider inferior
Ever since we stole that chocolate bar your dad has looked down on me.

look for someone/something: try to find
I'm looking for a red dress for the wedding.

look forward to something: be excited about the future
I'm looking forward to the Christmas break.

look into something: investigate
We are going to look into the price of snowboards today.

look out: be careful, vigilant, and take notice
Look out! That car's going to hit you!

look out for someone/something: be especially vigilant for
Don't forget to look out for snakes on the hiking trail.

look something over: check, examine
Can you look over my essay for spelling mistakes?

look something up: search and find information in a reference book or database
We can look her phone number up on the Internet.

look up to someone: have a lot of respect for
My little sister has always looked up to me.

M

make something up: invent, lie about something
Josie made up a story about about why we were late.

make up: forgive each other
We were angry last night, but we made up at breakfast.

make someone up: apply cosmetics to
My sisters made me up for my graduation party.

mix something up: confuse two or more things
I mixed up the twins' names again!