Verb |
Meaning |
Example |
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. |
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 in something |
develop a skin condition起水皰 |
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 嘔吐,吐出 |
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. |
not care for someone/something |
not like (formal) |
I don't care for his behaviour. |
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 with something |
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 22°C. |
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剝奪...的繼承權 |
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洗劫, 掠奪 (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. |
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. |
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, |