UNIT 40: Phrasal verbs (1)

I. Grammar

1. A phrasal verb is a verb plus an adverb or preposition with a different meaning from the original verb (cụm danh từ là động từ cộng với trạng từ hoặc giới từ với nghĩa khác với nghĩa của động từ gốc): to go, to go on, to look, to look up...

2. After the preposition can follow a noun, a pronoun, a verb or a phrase.(sau giới từ có thể có danh từ, đại từ, động từ hoặc cụm từ)

Watch out!

After a preposition, the following verb is always a gerund and not an infinitive. (sau giới từ, động từ sau luôn là dạng V-ing và không có dạng nguyên thể)

- I’m looking forward to seeing you soon. NOT : I’m looking forward to see you.

(Here "to" is a preposition not part of the infinitive)

- to get used to (sth. gets normal for you): First I had to get used to being alone at home. NOT I got used to be alone at home.

- to be used to (sth. is normal for you): Now I’m used to living alone. NOT I’m used to live alone.

- used to (did sth. regularly in the past): He used to travel to China when he was young. NOT He used travelling to China when he was young. (used is the past-form of to use, so you have to use an infinitive)

List of phrasal verbs with examples

to accuse (sb) of sth. (say sb. did sth. bad): They were accused of breaking into a shop.
to agree with (say yes to): I agree with playing cards.
to ask about: The children always ask me about Santa Claus.
to ask for: Can I ask you for a little money?
to ask sb. out (invite on a date): Brian asked Judy out to dinner and a movie.
to ask around (ask many people the same question): I asked around but nobody has seen my wallet.
to apologize for (say sorry): They apologize for being late.
to believe in (have faith in the existence of):I believe in God.
to belong to (possession): This motorbike belongs to my father.
to blame sb. for (say sb. makes sth. bad): The reporter is blamed for writing bad stories.
to blow sth. up (add air): We have to blow 50 balloons up for the party.
to break down (stop to work): Our car broke down at the side of the highway.
to break down (get upset): The woman broke down when the police told her that her son had died.
to break sth down (deconctruct): They will break the building down.
to break in (force entry to a building): Somebody broke in last night and stole our stereo.
to break out (escape): The prisoners broke out of jail when the guards weren't looking.
to break up (end a relationship):My boyfriend and I broke up before I moved to America.
to bring sb. down (make unhappy). This sad music is bringing me down.
to bring sb. up (raise a child): My grandparents brought me up after my parents died.
to bring sth. up (start talking about a subject): Suddenly my father brings up sports.
to call around (phone many different places/people): We called around to find a good place to go.
to call sb. back (return a phone call): I’ll call you back later.
to call for (require): We are calling for help.
to calm down (relax after being angry): You need to calm down before you drive the car.
to care about: I don’t care about him.
to care for sb./sth.: I don't care for his behaviour.
to carry on (continue): She carries on with her studies after the summer break.
to catch up (get to the same point as someone else): You'll have learn mor to catch up with the others.
to check in (arrive and register at a hotel or airport): We will get the hotel keys when we check in.
to check out (leave a hotel): You have to check out of the hotel before 11:00 AM.
to check sb/sth. out (look carefully): The company checks out all new employees.
to check out sb/sth (look at): Check out the crazy hair on that guy!
to cheer up (become happier): She cheered up when she heard the good news.
to cheer sb. up (make happier): I brought you some flowers to cheer you up.
to clean sth. up (tidy, clean): Please clean up your bedroom before you go outside.
to come across sth. (find unexpectedly): I came across this goldring when I walked home.
to come back (return): I wish he would come back to me.
to come in (enter): Come in please.
to come from somewhere( originate in): The art of origami comes from Asia.
to come over (come from a distance): I’ll come over after dinner.
to come to (arrive/reach a place): They’ll come to my house on Wednesday.
to come up (be mentioned/discussed, problem): Now my sister comes up with this problem.
to complain about: She complains about being cheated in the games.
to concentrate on: Do you concentrate on reading or writing?
to congratulate somebody on: I wanted to congratulate you on making the best speech.
to cope with: He is not sure how to cope with getting older.
to count on sb./sth. (rely on): I am counting on you to make dinner while I am out.
to cross sth. out (draw a line through): Please cross out your old address and write your new one.
to cut sth. down (make something fall to the ground): We had to cut the old tree in our yard.
to cut sth. off (remove with something sharp): The doctors cut off her leg.
to cut sth. off (stop providing): The phone company cut off our phone because we didn't pay.
to cut sb. off (take out of a will): My grandparents cut my father off when he remarried.
to decide against (choose sth. else): They decided against stealing the car.
to depend on : Success may depend on becoming more patient.
to do sth. over (do again): My teacher wants me to do my essay all over again.
to dream about / of (wish sth. is true): Sue dreams of being a pop star.
to dress up (wear nice clothes): It's a fancy restaurant so we have to dress up.
to drop in/by/over (come without an appointment): I might drop in/by/over for tea some time.
to drop sb./sth. off (take sth swh. and leave it there): I have to drop my sister off at school.
to drop out (quit a class, school etc): I dropped out of Science because it was too difficult.
to eat out (eat at a restaurant) I don't feel like cooking tonight. Let's eat out.
to end up (decide late): We ended up renting a movie instead of going to the theatre.
to fall apart (break into pieces): My new dress fell apart in the washing machine.
to fall down (fall to the ground): The picture that you hung up last night fell down this morning.
to fall for (be in love with): She usually falls for the bad guys.
to fall out(of hair, teeth): His hair started to fall out when he was only 35.
to feel like (be in this status): They feel like going to bed right now.
to figure sth. out (understand, find the answer): I need to figure out how to do this exercise.
to fill sth. into (write information in blanks): Please fill in the form with your name and address.
to fill sth out (to write information in blanks): The form must be filled out in capital letters.
to fill sth up (fill to the top): I always fill the bottle up when it is empty.
to find out (discover): We don't know where he lives. How can we find it out?
to get along/on (like each other):My new girlfriend and my sister get well along/on with each other.
to get around (have mobility): My grandfather can get around fine in his new wheelchair.
to get away (go on a vacation): We worked so hard this year that we had to get away for a week
to get back (return): We got back from our vacation last week.
to get sth back (receive something you had before): Liz got back her notebook after several months.
to get down to (concentrate): I have to get down to my homework now.
to get over sth. (recover from an illness, loss, difficulty): I just got over the flu.
to get over sth. (overcome a problem): I will get over him one day.
to get through (pass): I can’t come through the exam. I know I’ll fail.
to get through( be connected on the phone): Try again later, maybe then you can get through to her.
to get to (reach): My parents try to get to my home but the storm is too heavy.
to get together (meet): Let's get together for a BBQ this weekend.
to get used to / to be used to (sth. becomes normal/is normal for you): You must get used to working hours-long.
to give sth. away (give something to someone for free): The library was giving away old books.
to give sth. back (return a borrowed item): I have to give these rackets back to Franz.
to give in (stop fighting or arguing): My boyfriend didn't want to go, but he finally gave in.
to give sth. out (give to many people, usually at no cost): They were giving out free CDs.
to give sth. up (quit a habit): I want to give up smoking on January 1st.
to give up (stop trying): My maths homework was too difficult so I gave up.
to go ahead (start, continue): Please go ahead and eat before the food gets cold.
to go back (return to a place): I have to go back home and get my lunch.
to go down (sink, set, become less, decrease): The prices for cars are going down at the moment.
to go off (alarm begin to sound): Sorry, the alarm clock went off too late this morning.
to go out (leave home to go on an event): We're going out for dinner tonight.
to go out with sb. (date): Jesse has been going out with Luke since they met last winter.
to go over sth. (review): Please go over your answers before you hand in the test..
to go through (discuss in detail): Let’s go through the text.
to go through (experience sth. usually bad): It is terrible that you have to go through this difficulty.
to go with (match): This blouse goes well with my blue skirt.
to grow apart (stop being friends over time): My best friend and I grew apart after some years.
to grow up (become an adult): When Jack grows up he wants to be a fireman.
to grow out of sth. (get too big for): Elizabeth has grown out of her shoes, so she needs a new pair..
to grow into sth. (grow big enough to fit):The bicycle is too big for him, but he’ll grow into it soon.
to hand sth. in (submit): I have to hand in my essay by Friday.
to hand sth. out (to distribute to a group of people): We will hand out the invitations at the door.
to hand sth. over (give): The police asked the man to hand over his wallet and his weapons.
to hang on (wait a short time): Hang on while I grab my coat and shoes!
to hang out (spend time relaxing): Today we are just going to hang out at my place.
to hang up (end a phone call): He didn't say goodbye before he hung up.
to hold sb./sth. Back (prevent from doing/going): I had to hold my dog back because of a cat.
to hold sth. back (hide an emotion): Jamie held back his tears at his grandfather's funeral.
to hold on (wait a short time): Please hold on while I transfer you to Mr. Thang.
to insist on (don’t want to change mind about sth.) : The girls insisted on going out with Mark
to keep away from (prevent from/avoid being near): Keep away from this dirty dog.
to keep on doing sth, (continue doing): Keep on stirring until the liquid comes to a boil.
to keep something from sb. (don’t tell):We kept our relationship from our parents for two years.
to keep off (stay away):Keep off the grass.
to keep sb./sth. out (stop from entering): Try to keep the wet dog out of the living room.
to keep sth. up (continue at the same rate): If you keep those results up you can get to a great college.
to let someone down (fail to support or help, disappoint): Don't let me down this time.
to let someone in (allow to enter): Can you let the cat in before you go to school?
to look after sb./sth. (take care of): I have to look after my sick grandmother.
to look down on sb. (think less of, consider inferior): He has looked down on me.
to look for sb./sth. (try to find): I'm looking for a red dress for the wedding.
to look forward to sth. (be excited about the future): I'm looking forward to seeing you..
to look out for sb./sth. (be especially vigilant for): Don't forget to look out for snakes.
to look something over (check): Can you look over my essay for spelling mistakes?
to look something up (search in a book)We can look her phone number up on the Internet.
to look up to sb. (have a lot of respect for): My little sister has always looked up to me.
to make sth. up (invent, lie about sth.): Josie made up a story about about why we were late.
to make up (forgive each other): We were angry last night, but we made up at breakfast.
to make sb. up (apply cosmetics to): My sisters made me up for my graduation party.
to mix sth. up (confuse two or more things): I mixed up the twins' names again!