The 20 most used phrasal verbs in English

You phrasal verbs (phrasal verbs) in English are formed by the combination of a verb + adverb or of a verb + a preposition.

So that you stay inside the phrasal verbs most used, the All Matter prepared a selection with the main cases.

Complete list of phrasal verbs

Check out our table for a complete list of phrasal verbs, where the 20 most used cases, their translations and example sentences are indicated.

Check out the full list of phrasal verbs in English that the All Matter prepared for you!

Phrasal verb Translation example sentence
break up Terminate (relationship) They broke up after a three-year relationship. (They broke up after a 3 year relationship.)
come back Come back She came back from Brazil in May. (She returned from Brazil in May.)
figure out To understand After her phone call, I figured out what has happened. (After her phone call, I understood what had happened.)
Find out To discover She found out the truth when she read the message. (She discovered the truth when she read the message.)
Get along Get along (good or bad) with someone My cousins ​​and I get along pretty well. (My cousins ​​and I get along very well.)
get away Escape The thief got away before the cops arrived. (The thief escaped before the police arrived.)
get up Get up; wake up they get up at 6 every day. (They get up at 6 every day.)
Give up To give up We gave up traveling when we saw our account balance. (We gave up traveling when we saw our account balance.)
go on Continue She can't go on overprotecting her daughter. (She cannot continue to protect her daughter too much.)
go out Go out They used to go out every weekend. (They used to go out every weekend.)
grow up Grow up Your son is growing up so fast! (Your child is growing up so fast!)
hold on Wait Hold on a second, please. I'll be right back! (Wait a second, please. I'll be right back.)
look after Take care; to care She'll help me look after my mom. (She will help me take care of my mother.)
Look for To search for He's been looking for his car keys for over an hour! (He's been looking for his car keys for over an hour!)
look forward wait anxiously We are looking forward to meeting you. (We look forward to meeting you.)
pick up Search He loves to pick up his grandson at school. (He loves to pick up his grandson from school.)
Run out Run out (something that ran out) We ran out of money and had to postpone the trip. (We ran out of money and had to postpone the trip.)
Throw (something) away throw (something) away She threw the broken toys away. (She threw away the broken toy).
turn out finish, result She has gone through a tough time, but everything turned out fine. (She went through a difficult period, but everything turned out well.)
work out Work out, work out They've been working out everyday in order to lose weight. (They have been exercising every day to lose weight.)

Tip about phrasal verbs

A very important fact about the phrasal verbs is related to their respective meanings.

When faced with some content that contains phrasal verbs, don't try to translate them literally.

Note that the meaning of this type of verb, in most cases, is not related to the meaning of the verb, adverb or preposition as isolated elements.

The translation of a phrasal verb it must be interpreted as a whole, not in isolation. Otherwise it won't make any sense.

Note the analysis below.

look after

look after phrasal verb
She preferred to stay home and look after the kids. (She preferred to stay at home and take care of the children.)
  • to look: to look
  • After: later; after
  • to look after: take care; to care

Run out

run out of money
I always run out of money when I am on vacation. (I always run out of money when I'm on vacation.)
  • to run: run
  • Oct: outside
  • Of: in
  • to run out of: running out of something (in the sense of running out of something)

Interested in learning more about English grammar? Be sure to check the texts below!

  • Top slang in American and British English
  • Verbal Tenses in English
  • When to use In, On and At
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