In today's video, I'm going to teach you 50 common English phrasal verbs
There is also a 42-page PDF eBook that you can download to study these phrasal verbs anytime
Each phrasal verb has a definition and a real example sentence to help you understand its meaning
Thanks for watching. What is a phrasal verb
In English, a phrasal verb is a combination of two or three words to make a phrase with
a single meaning. Phrasal verbs combine a verb and an adverb or a preposition
Let's look up the meaning in the dictionary. The phrasal verb look up means to look for information in a dictionary or reference book
or by using a computer. Why should I learn phrasal verbs? Phrasal verbs are very common in spoken English, but they can be difficult to understand
A phrasal verb's meaning can be very different from the meaning of the words by themselves
Look out is a common phrasal verb. We know the verb look means to actively see, but when you add the preposition out, you
make the phrasal verb look out. The meaning becomes be careful. Something dangerous is coming
Ball is coming. Look out. There's a snake in that tree. Look out
Our first two examples were look up and look out. Let's start with four more common phrasal verbs with looks
Look after. To be responsible for someone or something or to take care of someone or something
My sister will look after my kids while my wife and I are on vacation
This means my sister will take care of my children during our vacation
The new Tesla Model 3 will go on sale in August. I want Scott and Nathan to look after promotion
Scott and Nathan will be responsible for advertising our new car. Look around
To go someplace, an area or building, etc. and move around to see what is there
I enjoy visiting new places and looking around. You can learn a lot about an area by its buildings, stores, and people
This means I like traveling to new places and seeing what is there
Look into. This means to examine something. Scientists are looking into using spider silk for heart surgery
This means scientists are getting the idea of using spider silk for future heart surgeries
Look forward to. To be speaking with pleasure about something that is going to happen because you expect
to enjoy it. This phrasal verb is very common. I am really looking forward to my spring vacation this year
My family is going to Hawaii. I am excited to travel to Hawaii
Thinking about it makes me happy. Keiko always looks forward to her English lessons
Her teacher is very handsome. Keiko feels good to think about her future English lessons
Phrasal verbs with puts. Put aside. To ignore or forget something. Usually a feeling or a difference of opinion
Many people are hoping that America and North Korea can put aside their differences and
have useful meetings in the future. This means people hope that the two countries can forget the problems of the past and work
together for peace. Put aside. Meaning number two. To save something or keep it available to use
I put aside money every month for when I retire. This means every month I save money so I can use it when I stop working
I put aside time every morning to do yoga. I keep time in the morning just for doing yoga
Put off doing something. Many people put off doing their taxes until the last minute
But if you do this, tax time becomes very stressful. This means people plan to do something at a later date, tomorrow, next week, etc
But soon there is no time. Your taxes are due. And the situation becomes very stressful
Please like and subscribe if you are enjoying this video. Put somebody away
To send someone to prison, to a mental hospital, etc. Alan was put away for ten years for stealing from his job
This means Alan was sent to jail for ten years. Put something away
This means to put something in the place where it is kept because you have finished using it
In Canada, we put our barbecues away for the winter, usually in our garage
Even in the cold winter, we keep our barbecue in the garage because we won't use it
Put away, meaning number three. To save money to spend later. This is similar in meaning to put aside
I put away $1200 every month for when I retire. This means every month I save $1200 so I can use it when I stop working
Oliver puts $60 away every week. He saves enough to buy a new computer
Oliver is saving money every week until she has enough to buy a computer
Put away, meaning four. To eat or drink large quantities of something
I was so hungry last night. I put away a whole large pizza by myself
This means I ate a large quantity of pizza. Put back. To return something to its usual place or to the place where it was before it was lost
After you use the TV remote, please put it back on the coffee table
Please return the remote to the place it was before you used it
Put something behind you. Try to forget about an unpleasant experience and think about the future
I just ended a bad relationship, but I will put that experience behind me and focus on
being happy. This means I will forget about the unpleasant relationship and think about the future
Put off or put something off. To change something to a later time or date
Brian had to pull off his trip to Hawaii because his mother became ill
This means Brian had to change the date of his vacation because of his mother's poor health
To be reckless. To accept someone or something that is annoying, unpleasant, etc. without complaint
My neighbor is so noisy. He often plays loud music late at night
I'm not going to pop with it any longer. I'm calling our landlord tomorrow morning
I'm not going to accept this unpleasant situation anymore. Phasal verbs with get
There are a lot of phasal verbs with get. A lot. I chose 21 common examples for this list
Get something across. To be communicated or understood. To succeed in communicating something
I want to improve my English. I really hope to get my ideas across to my coworkers in Canada
This means I want to communicate and be understood by my staff at my company's Canadian office
Get along with. To have a friendly relationship with someone. Jordan is close with most of his family, but he doesn't get along with his brother
This means they don't have a close relationship. Their relationship is not good
Get around. To move from place to place or from person to person
My great uncle can't walk anymore, but he gets around with an electric scooter
This means my great uncle is able to move from place to place with the help of an electric scooter
News of Mike's divorce soon got around the office. Many people talked about Mike's divorce at the office
The information went from person to person. Get around to. To find the time to do something
I was so busy with my private students that I didn't write a blog post last week
I wanted to, but I never got around to it. This means I never found the time
Get away. Meaning one. To have a vacation. I hope to get away for a couple of days next month
Work has been busy. This means I want to take a short vacation next month
Get away from. Meaning two. To succeed in leaving a place. I won't be able to get away from the office before 7.30
This means I won't be able to leave the office before 7.30
Get away with something. This means to steal something and escape with it
Thieves got away with computer equipment worth $30,000. This means the thieves took $30,000 worth of computer equipment and they haven't been
caught yet. Get away with something. Meaning two. To get a light punishment, especially if the punishment could have been stronger
Cook drove his car into a street lamp. He was lucky to get away with only a fine
This means Cook's punishment was light. It could have been much stronger
Meaning three. To do something wrong and not be punished for it
Walter tried to cheat on the test by using his smartphone, but of course the teacher
saw him. I can't believe he thought he would get away with it
Walter thought he wouldn't be caught cheating on the test. Get back
To return, especially to your home. What time did you get back from the party last night
This means when did you return home? To get something back. To have something again after you lost it
Betty left work for two months to look after her father who was ill
Her father is better now and Betty got her job back. Betty left her job for two months, but now she has it again
Get back at somebody. This is informal. To do something bad to someone who has done something bad to you
To get revenge on someone. My brother ate all my Halloween candy
I got back at him by hiding a school bag in the basement
Now he can't find it. Get back to somebody. To answer a question or a message later
To reply later. Is Patrick coming to the party? I'm not sure
I'll find out and get back to you. I'll get the information and tell you later
I sent Richard four emails already. I hope he gets back to me soon
This means I hope that Richard answers my emails soon. Get back to something
To return to something. Why are we talking about the company dress code
This meeting is about our new budget. Let's get back to that
This means the topic of the meeting is the company budget. But then we started talking about the company dress code
Let's return to the main subject of our meeting
Get back to something. To start a relationship with someone again. Especially a romantic relationship. After having ended a previous relationship with the same person
I hope that Derek and Michelle get back together. I was sad when they broke up. I hope that Derek and Michelle start a relationship again
Get down to something. To begin to do something. To begin to do something. To begin to do something
To begin to do something. To begin to do something. To begin to do something. To begin to do something
To begin to do something. To begin to do something. Get down to something. To begin to do something
To begin to do something. To begin to do something. To begin to do something. To begin to do something
To begin to do something. I have a group meeting tomorrow after work, but I'm trying to get out of it
Attending the meeting is part of my job, but I don't want to go
I'm trying to avoid going. Get over something, somebody. To return to your usual state of health, happiness, etc., after an illness, a shock, or the end of a relationship
Lucy is very upset after a breakup, but she'll get over it
Lucy is sad now, but she'll be happy again soon. I spent the weekend in bed trying to get over a bad cold
This means I rested so my body could recover and return to a healthy condition
Get over yourself. To stop thinking that you are so important. To stop being so serious
Many politicians feel like they are very important, but they should get over themselves and start focusing on helping the people who elected them
This means politicians need to stop being so proud and just do their job
Help their people and their country. Get something over with. To complete something unpleasant, but necessary
I have to see the dentist to fix the cavity. I'm not looking forward to it
I'll be glad to get it over with. I will be happy when my cavity is fixed and I don't have to visit the dentist anymore
It's necessary, but unpleasant to fix the cavity. Get through something. To manage to do or complete something
2020 has been a hard year for many people. These are difficult times, but we can get through them together
We can be okay, even though there were many challenges this year. The difficult times will be over soon
Get through to someone. To reach someone. The United Nations wants to send aid into countries affected by war, but it's hard to get through the fighting
It's hard to reach the people who need help because of the fighting
Meaning number two. To make contact with someone by telephone. To make contact with someone by telephone
After the big earthquake of 2010, I tried to call my wife, but I couldn't get through
All of the cellular lines were too busy. Everyone was calling their families
I couldn't make contact with my wife by telephone because high call volumes overloaded the cellular signals
Get through to something. To do something. Of a player or team
To reach the next stage of a competition. Germany lost its first game to Mexico
Many people are wondering if they will get through to the next stage. This means people aren't sure if Germany will reach the next stage of the World Cup
Say the verbs with blow. Blow somebody off. To deliberately not meet someone when you said you would
I can't believe Ryan blew us off again. This is the last time I make plans with him
This means Ryan said he would meet us, but he didn't. I can't believe he did it again
Blow something off. To deliberately not do something that you said you would do
Let's go play soccer. It's a nice day. I told my dad that I would cut the grass today
But I can blow it off. Let's play. This means I won't cut the grass even though I said I would
Blow out. If a flame blows out, it is put out by the wind, etc
It was windy, so it was hard to light the lantern. The wind kept blowing out my mattress
This means the wind put out the flame of my mattress. Blow something out
To put out a flame, etc. by blowing. Happy Birthday! Blow out your candles and make a wish
This means blow on the candles and put out the flame. Blow something out
This means blow on the candles and put out the flame. Blow over
To go away without having a serious effect. The typhoon blew over in the night
By the morning, it wasn't even raining hard. This means the typhoon came and went without having a serious effect
Another example. The president's scandal was all over the news for three days
Then it blew over and no one seemed to notice it. After a few days, the scandal was forgotten
It didn't have much effect on the president. Blow up. To explode
To be destroyed by an explosion. The bomb blew up, but no one was hurt
This means the bomb exploded. Blow up number two. To fill something with air or gas so that it becomes foam
Help me blow up these balloons for Gene's birthday party. This means help me fill these balloons with air
Blow up at somebody. To get very angry with someone. I'm sorry I blew up at you
I'm under a lot of pressure at work. It won't happen again
This means I'm sorry for getting angry with you. Phrase of the verb with kick and punch
Kick back. To relax. It's Friday night. The workweek is done now and it's time to kick back and enjoy the weekend
This means I can relax now because work is finished and I have Saturday and Sunday off
Kick off. To shut. It's 4 o'clock. Let's kick this meeting off and hopefully we can be finished by 5.30
We can all go home after that. This means let's start the meeting now and maybe finish before 5.30
Prepare. To make someone leave or go away from somewhere. Jeff had too many drinks, started a fight and got kicked out of the pub
This means Jeff was made to leave the pub because he was causing problems
Kick in. To begin to take effect. We have to prepare for the coming changes
The new laws will kick in this September. This means new laws will take effect so we need to prepare
Kick in something. To give your share of money or help. If we collect $50 for a new coffee machine, the boss says the company will kick in another $50
We can buy a nice machine for $100. If the staff can collect $50, the company will help with $50 more
Punch in something or punch something in. To put information into a device by pressing the keys or buttons
My public building has a security system. You have to punch in the security code to open the front door
This means you have to put the information into the panel beside the door to open it
Some more phrasal verbs. Catch on. To become popular or fashionable. I see many people wearing shirts with floral prints again
I hope they catch on. I've got three in my closet. This means if floral shirts become popular again, it's great
I have three shirts that I can wear again. Pokemon Go caught on like crazy in Tokyo when it was released
I saw people playing it everywhere. This means Pokemon Go became very popular
Like crazy means really or very in a strong way. Caught on like crazy means it became very popular
I saw people playing it everywhere. This means Pokemon Go became very popular
Like crazy means it became very popular. It's raining like crazy means it's really raining a lot
Catch up. To spend extra time doing something because you have not done it earlier
After my vacation, I always have a lot of work to catch up on at the office
This means I've been away from the office and I'm behind on my work tasks
It will take extra time to do it after I get back to work. To find out about things that have happened
I saw Junpei for the first time in ages. We had coffee and caught up for two hours this afternoon
This means Jun and I spent two hours telling each other about all the things that have happened in our lives since we last saw each other
Catch up, meaning three. To reach someone who is ahead by going faster
Catch up with somebody. Don't wait for me. You guys go ahead and I'll catch up with you later
I will reach you after. Catch up, meaning four. To reach the same level or standard as someone who is better or more advanced
To reach the same level or standard as someone who is better or more advanced
Jason was sick for six weeks and missed school. When he went back to class, he had to work hard to catch up
This means Jason had to work very hard to reach the same level as his classmates
His classmates had six weeks of school that Jason didn't have, so they were more advanced
Reach out to someone. To show someone that you're interested in them and or want to help them
Social media is a good way to reach out to people who are studying English. This means using social media is a good way to connect with English students that I can help
Lay into somebody something. To attack someone violently, physically or with words
My dad laid into me for scratching his car last night. This means my dad really yelled at me because I scratched his car
Lay off somebody something. You should tell someone to stop doing something
We should lay off Peter. It wasn't his fault. This means we should stop blaming Peter. He doesn't deserve our anger
He didn't do anything. Lay somebody off. To stop employing someone because there's not enough work for them to do
The company lost money last year, so they need to lay off 50 workers next month
I hope my job is safe. This means 50 people will lose their jobs because the company doesn't have enough money
Lay off something. To stop using something. I had a terrible hangover this morning
I need to lay off beer for a while. This means I have to stop drinking
I feel terrible this morning. I have to stop drinking. I feel terrible this morning
Lay out. To plan how something should look and arrange it in this way
This is a well laid out web page. This means the web page is arranged well
It's clear and easy to follow. All pages and links are easy to find
Meaning two. To present the plan, an argument, etc. clearly and carefully
My fee, job description, and responsibilities are all laid out in the contract
The details of my job are presented clearly in the contract. Check somebody's something off
To put a mark beside a name or an item on a list to show that something has been dealt with
I love having a to-do app on my smartphone. It's good for reminding me what I have to do each day
After I complete a task, I can check it off. A list has a list of things to do
I can put a mark to show that something has been done. Check on somebody's something
To make sure that there is nothing wrong with someone or something. To make sure that there is nothing wrong with someone or something
Can you go downstairs and check on the kids? It's very quiet down there
This means can you go downstairs and make sure that the children are okay
Check out. To be found to be true or acceptable after being examined
He said that he had to work late. By his secretary said he left the office at 4.30
His story doesn't check out. This means after I examined the details of the story, I found that it wasn't true
Check out of. To pay your bill and leave a hotel. It's almost 11 o'clock
You need to check out now. This means you need to pay your bill and leave your room by 11 o'clock
Check out somebody's something. To look at or examine a personal thing that seems interesting or attractive after being examined
There is a store of a car dealership near my house. I'm going to go this afternoon and check out the new cars
This means I will go to the car dealership and look at the new cars
I'm going to go to the car dealership and look at the new cars