This is a self-study resource for C1 students. Full credit to breakoutenglish.com for the list of phrasal verbs:
https://breakoutenglish.com/advanced-cae/phrasal-verbs/
All I’ve done is put each one in context with a sentence or two, then made a quizlet set with the prepositions removed. Download the handout below:
At the end of the handout I’ve added a QR code to the quizlet set so that students can access it easily.
117 C1 Phrasal Verbs
https://breakoutenglish.com/advanced-cae/phrasal-verbs/
- They’ve made their demands and they’re not going to back down. – stop demanding something
- My car always breaks down when I don’t have enough money to get it repaired. – stop working
- They broke/split up last year but then they got back together. – to end; to separate (a marriage / a relationship / etc.)
- My parents died when I was very young so my grandma brought me up. – raise/educate/care for (a child)
- I bumped/ran into an old friend from uni in the street. – to meet someone unexpectedly
- The situation calls for calm negotiations and cool heads from everyone involved. – demand / request
- They’ve had to call off the match due to bad weather. – cancel (an event)
- I’m just going to carry on working on my presentation, but let me know if you need anything. – continue
- The new hairstyle has really caught on with teenagers in my town. catch on – to become popular (an idea or a style);
- I kept dropping hints about what I wanted for my birthday but my wife didn’t catch on. – to understand/realise after a long time
- I bought him a pint to try to cheer him up – make happier
- I came across my old school books while I was clearing out the attic. – find by chance
- He came into quite a lot of money when his grandparents passed away. come into (money) – inherit
- Come round after school and we’ll work on the science project together. – come to your house
- I’ve come up with a great idea for our Halloween costumes. – think of and suggest an idea
- The topic of a pay rise came up in my meeting with the boss. – be mentioned, arise or appear (in class / an exam / a meeting)
- Don’t be late! Everyone is counting on you. – to rely on
- My New Year’s resolution is to cut down on fast food.– reduce the amount you consume
- Sorry, the call got cut off when we went through a tunnel. – separate / isolate / interrupt
- My doctor has told me I need to cut out all processed meats from my diet. – stop doing / eating something
- The child was struggling to do up his shoelaces. We’re doing up our house this summer. – fasten, button up clothes; repair, redecorate or modernize a building or room
- We all dressed up as monsters for Halloween.– put on different clothes in order to disguise yourself
- My Dad dropped by on his way home to work to say hello. – to visit informally or unexpectedly
- He also came to drop off my Christmas presents. The taxi dropped us off outside the airport. – to take something (or someone) to a place and leave it there
- He didn’t enjoy the economics degree course and dropped out after 6 months. – stop taking part in (a competition, a university, etc.)
- We got lost and ended up in a completely different town. We were supposed to go out clubbing but we ended up staying in. – an end result of something planned or unplanned
- She fell for him the moment she met him. – fall in love with
- She fell out with her younger sister over who was going to look after grandma at Christmas. – argue and stop being friendly with someone
- Yesterday she found out that she passed her law degree. – discover
- I wrote them an email to follow up my complaint from the previous day. – find out more about something; take further action
- I get along/on really well with all my teachers. – have a good relationship with
- We just want to get away for the weekend and have some peace and quiet. – go on a short holiday/break
- He stole €10 from his mum’s purse and got away with it, she blamed his brother. – not be punished for doing something
- I don’t earn much but it’s enough to get by. – manage to survive / live
- Stop chatting and get on with your work! – start or continue doing something (especially work)
- It took him a long time to get over her, I think he still loves her. – recover after the end of a relationship with someone
- I’m still getting over a nasty cold but I should be fine in a couple of days. – recover from
- I get together with my old uni friends every 6 months or so. – meet (usually for social reasons)
- I’m cleaning out my garage this weekend, I’m going to get rid of so much old stuff. – eliminate/discard
- He accidently gave away the surprise birthday party to the birthday girl, what an idiot! – reveal
- Hey! That’s my bag! Give it back – return
- Don’t forget to give/hand in your essays at the end of the class. – submit (homework, etc.)
- The kids wouldn’t stop asking for an ice cream so I finally gave in and let them have one. – agree to something you do not want to
- The rotting fruit was giving off a nasty smell. (a smell) – produce and send into the air
- The receptionist gave out all the most important information to the guests. – announce or broadcast information
- They’re giving/handing out free samples of delicious cheese at the supermarket. – distribute to a group of people
- The sudoku puzzle was too difficult so I gave up and read a book instead. – to stop trying to do something (often because it is too difficult)
- A: We should decorate the kitchen. B: Yeah, I’d go along with that. – support an idea or agree with someone’s opinion
- The milk has gone off, we’ll have to buy some more. A bomb went off outside the airport, luckily nobody was hurt. – explode; become bad (food)
- The poker game went on for hours and hours. – to continue
- Have you heard? Charlie is going out with Kathy. – have a romantic relationship with someone
- My Dad’s threatening to take away my car keys if I don’t tidy my room but I don’t think he will go through with it. – complete a promise or plan
- My best friend from primary school and I grew apart over the years and now we hardly speak. – get distant from someone, like a friend
- When I grow up, I want to be a firefighter. – slowly become an adult
- We hung around outside the concert hall for 2 hours after the show trying to get an autograph. – to wait or spend time somewhere, doing nothing
- I’m just going to hang out with my friends tonight. – spend time relaxing (informal)
- Don’t leave your shirts on the floor, you need to hang them up. She finished the call and then hung up. – to hang clothes or an object on a hook or line; to end a phone call
- Go down this street and then head for the big church, your hotel is right next door to it. – go towards
- My shyness always holds me back in social situations. – prevent someone from making progress
- We need to hurry up! Our train leaves in five minutes. – do something more quickly
- Just keep on walking this way and you’ll get to the station in no time. – to continue
- Where were you on Saturday? I really needed your help and you let me down. – disappoint
- The police decided to let the kids off with a warning because it was their first offence. – give someone a lighter punishment than they expected (or not punish at all)
- I can’t come out, I need to look after my baby brother. – take care of
- I hate it when people look down on those who are less fortunate than them. – feel superior to
- I’ve been looking for a flat for 2 months but haven’t found one I like yet. – try to find
- I’m really looking forward to Christmas this year. – feel happy about something that is going to happen
- The police are looking into the case of the missing dog. – investigate
- I had never heard of my Dad’s favorite footballer, I had to look him up on wikipedia. – find information about (e.g. a word in a dictionary)
- I’ve always looked up to my mum, she’s very resilient. – admire and respect
- They gave us free tickets to a different show to make up for the cancellation. – compensate for
- They fell out over something stupid but now they’ve made up. – become friends again
- He’s always making up ridiculous stories and excuses for why he’s late. (something) – invent (stories, excuses)
- Ok, thanks for that report Jon, now let’s move on to Sarah’s presentation. – change to a different job, activity or place
- I moved out of my parents house when I was 18. – stop living in a house or flat
- He was so dehydrated that he passed out and woke up in the back of an ambulance. – lose consciousness
- When are you going to pay back the money you owe me? – return money
- Don’t worry, my parents are going to pay for dinner. – purchase
- They’ve finally managed to pay off the mortgage on the house. She got into Oxford University, all of her hard work has paid off! – finish paying for something; have a positive result from hard work
- Mum, it’s raining really hard, can you come and pick me up from the train station? – meet / collect someone (e.g. at the station / from school)
- At the end of the presentation our boss pointed out several obvious mistakes we had made. – to draw attention to something or someone
- Vicky! Come and put away your toys before you have dinner. – put something back in the correct place
- I’m going to the dentist tomorrow, I’ve been putting it off for months. – postpone
- They put on a big show to raise money for charity. (an event/a show) – organize an event
- Put your coat on, it’s cold outside. (clothes /make up) – place something on your body
- I put on quite a lot of weight during lockdown. (weight) – increase (weight)
- The firefighters were finally able to put the fire out. – extinguish (e.g. fire)
- My uncle can put us up for a couple of nights while we’re in London. (for the night) – accommodate
- Put your hand up if you have any questions. (your hand) – lift into the air
- I’m not going to put up with anymore lateness from those kids. – tolerate
- The car rental company tried to rip us off but I was having none of it. – charge someone too much for something
- We ran out of petrol in the middle of nowhere, it was terrifying. – use up (e.g. money, petrol, time)
- We had to set off at 4am, it was horrible. – start a journey
- We set up the company in 1995 and it’s still going strong to this day. – establish / start (e.g. a company)
- Dan! Stop showing off and pass us the ball, we’re losing 4-0. – try to impress people by telling or showing them what you are capable of
- They’ve had to shut down 5 stores in the area because sales have dropped. – to close
- We need to sort out accommodation for our trip to Paris. – arrange or order by classes or categories; find a solution
- BBC stands for the British Broadcasting Corporation. – to represent
- His ginger hair really makes him stand out from the rest of the boys in his class. – be easy to see because of being different
- I’d say I take after my Dad in my looks and my Mum in my personality. (someone) – resemble a member of your family in appearance, behaviour or character
- Please take your feet off the seat, your shoes are very dirty. – to remove from a surface or your body (clothes)
- Our plane takes off at 9pm. – leave the ground (e.g. a plane)
- She’s taken on a lot of extra responsibilities in her new job. – attempt something new; employ
- A new manager has taken over the department. – take control of
- I took to ice-skating really quickly and now I’ve signed up for weekly classes.– start to like, especially after only a short time
- I first took up volleyball when I was in secondary school. – start doing (a hobby)
- The teacher told us off for being late. – speak angrily to someone who has done something wrong
- I’ve decided to throw away my old sofa, unless you want it. – get rid of something you do not need any more
- The weather on the mountain got really bad so we had to turn back. – return towards the place you started from
- They’ve turned down our offer for the house, they want more money. – reject or refuse
- On a full moon he turns into a werewolf! They’ve turned my favourite restaurant into a Burger King! – to transform
- Don’t forget to turn/switch off the lights when you leave. – to disconnect (e.g. a computer)
- He switched/turned on the TV and sat down to watch the match. – to connect (e.g. the TV)
- Our bus didn’t turn up for 2 hours. – arrive, usually unexpectedly, early or late
- He always uses up all the toilet roll and doesn’t replace it. – finish a supply of something
- I’ve completely worn out my old football boots, I need to get some new ones. – to use something until it becomes unusable
- I work out 3 times a week at the gym. The students struggled to work out the complicated equations. The police couldn’t work out how the burglars got into the house. – think about and find a solution; do exercise
– Quizlet set