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Phrasal Verbs List 3

Perfect English Grammar

Phrasal Verbs 3

Download this explanation in PDF here.
Try an exercise about these phrasal verbs here.

This list is the third fifteen of the list of 150 most common phrasal verbs made by the linguists Mélodie Garnier and Norbert Schmitt. You can see the full list here.

You can see all my pages about phrasal verbs here.

31. COME DOWN (FROM) = move from a high place to a lower place
  • She came down slowly from the roof.
  • Do come down! You’re going to fall!
  • They came down from the tower.
32. GO AHEAD = to begin to do something
  • I asked the manager and she says to go ahead and start the meeting.
  • Go ahead! You don’t need to wait for us!
  • I’m going to go ahead and book the holiday.
33. GO UP = increase (in price or temperature, etc.)
  • House prices have gone up a lot in the last few months.
  • At the beginning of our trip, it was really cold but then the temperature went up.
  • I can’t believe how much the prices have gone up since my last visit here.
34. LOOK BACK (ON) = think about something in the past
  • When I look back on my childhood, I realise how different the world is now.
  • She spent time looking back on the race and thinking about ways to improve for next time.
  • When I look back on those days, I can’t believe how young and foolish we were.
35. WAKE UP = change from sleeping to being awake
  • What time do you usually wake up?
  • She woke me up at 5am!
  • Could you wake up the children, please?
36. CARRY OUT = do and finish a task or activity
  • She carried out an experiment on the cells in her laboratory.
  • Please carry out the survey as soon as you can.
  • The work was carried out by a local builder.
37. TAKE OVER = take control of
  • I don’t want to invite Mark! He always takes over the conversation.
  • When the boss resigned, Julie took over the company.
  • The rebels took over the Parliament.
38. HOLD UP = hold something high up so people can see it
  • She held up her hand.
  • He held up the bag and asked if anyone would like a closer look.
  • Please hold this up for a moment.
39. PULL OUT (OF) = take something out of a container
  • She pulled her purse out of her pocket.
  • He reached into the drawer and pulled out a notebook and pen.
  • She grabbed her bag and pulled out a bottle of water.
40. TURN AROUND / TURN ROUND = move so you face the other direction
  • He turned around and looked out the window.
  • We walked along the beach for a while, then turned around and walked back.
  • Turn around and don’t look! I’ve got a surprise for you!
41. TAKE UP = use a certain amount of space or time
  • The table takes up most of the kitchen!
  • This work will take up the whole weekend.
  • The children take up most of my time.
42. LOOK DOWN = move your eyes down
  • She was very shy and she looked down when she met anyone new.
  • I looked down to see a puppy at my feet.
  • He opened the window and looked down.
43. PUT UP = fix something where it will be seen
  • She put up lots of pictures in her new flat.
  • Please put up this notice.
  • The children put their drawings up on the wall.
44. BRING BACK = make something return
  • She brought the conversation back to the weekend.
  • He wants to bring back traditional schools.
  • We had stopped having weekly meetings but the new boss brought them back.
45. BRING UP = start to talk about
  • I wasn’t going to mention it, but Julie brought up the plans for the holidays.
  • I want to talk to my boss about my pay but I don’t know how to bring it up.
  • After we sat down, she brought up the problems that she’d been having at work.
Try an exercise about these phrasal verbs here.