Phrasal Verbs​

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Phrasal verbs are very common in English but they also cause a few problems.

First, there are very, very many phrasal verbs and it can be hard to know where to start. However, two linguists called Mélodie Garnier and Norbert Schmitt have made a very useful list of the 150 most common ones. My explanations below each look at 15 of the most common phrasal verbs.

Second, phrasal verbs often have more than one meaning. 'Take off' can mean both 'leave the ground' and 'become successful'. 'Go on' has eight meanings in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary. How can we choose which meanings to study? Again, the list made by Garnier and Schmitt is helpful. Here I'm looking at the most common meaning for each phrasal verb.

Third, phrasal verbs are often used only in very specific situations. They have narrow meanings and you will often see the same examples again and again. These are the situations that it's important to learn. Even though 'go on' means 'happen', we can use 'happen' in a lot more situations than we can use 'go on'.

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1: GO ON = happen

• What's going on?

• There's a class going on at the moment.

• What went on last night?

 

2: PICK UP = get something or someone from a place

• I picked up my brother from the airport.

• Please pick up some bread.

• Would you come and pick me up from work tonight?

 

3: COME BACK = return to a place (the speaker is in that place)

• She came back around 10pm last night.

• When will you come back from France?

• Please come back! It's boring here without you.

 

4: COME UP WITH = produce an idea

• Julie came up with a great idea.

• He came up with an answer to the question very quickly.

• Can you come up with a better solution?

 

5: GO BACK = return to a place (the speaker isn't in that place)

• He finished his work and went back to his flat.

• When is she planning to go back to Japan?

• I'll go back to the library later.

 

6: FIND OUT = get information

• Can you find out what time the restaurant opens?

• I found out that we need to submit our essays next Tuesday.

• I don't know what the weather forecast is for tomorrow, but I'll find out.

 

7: COME OUT = appear from a place

• She came out of the kitchen.

• He went to the cafe and came out with a coffee.

• Please come out of the bedroom.

 

8: GO OUT = go to an event / restaurant / pub / party

• Let's go out for dinner.

• You're going out a lot these days.

• We should go out more.

 

9: POINT OUT = show / mention

• She pointed out the beautiful paintings on the walls.

• Please point out to the students that they must attend all the lectures.

• 'We'll miss the bus if we don't hurry', he pointed out.

 

10: GROW UP = become an adult

• I grew up in Scotland.

• My children are growing up too fast!

• When will he grow up?

 

11: SET UP = create / arrange

• I need to set up a new bank account.

• She's decided to set up her own company.

• I set up some language classes at the school.

 

12: TURN OUT = in the end we discover

• The maid turned out to have stolen the money.

• He turned out to be a friend of Alex's.

• The party turned out to be a big success.

 

13: GET OUT = leave a room / building / car

• I need to get out of the house!

• She got out of the car and went into the shop.

• Get out! There's a fire in the kitchen!

 

14: COME IN / INTO = enter (the speaker is in that place)

• Please come in! It's great to see you.

• She came into the living room and sat down.

• Don't come in! I'm not ready yet!

 

15: TAKE ON = to be responsible for

• He's going to take on the new project.

• She isn't taking on any new students at the moment.

• Could you take on some extra work?

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16. GIVE UP = stop having or doing

• She has finally given up smoking.

• I had to give up coffee when I was ill.

• He gave up chocolate for a month.

 

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