Common Phrasal Verbs

Here are some common phrasal verbs.

Blow up

To blow up is to explode.

• The terrorist blew himself up outside the school.
• The police foiled the terrorist’s attempt to blow up the bridge.

Bring up

To bring something up is to mention it.

• You shouldn’t have brought up the matter of his prison record again.

Bring up

To bring up a child is to raise him.

• The poor woman worked hard to bring up her children.

Call off

To call something off is to cancel it.

• The meeting has been called off.

Do over

To do something over is to repeat it.

• If the job isn’t satisfactory, you will have to do it over.

Fill up

To fill something up is to fill it to capacity.

• Please fill up this bottle.

Give back

To give something back is to return it.

• When are you going to give me my money back?

Hand in

To hand an assignment in is to submit it.

• All students have handed in their work.

Hang up

To hang up is to disconnect.

• She hung up before I could say anything.

To hang up is also to put something on the hook.

• He hung up the coat on the hook.

To hold up

To hold up is to delay.

• The traffic held me up.

Leave out

To leave something out is to omit

• He made sure that he hadn’t left out any important detail.