15 Phrasal Verbs You Should Know (if you don't already...)

Phrasal verbs consist of a verb + particle (usually a preposition, sometimes an adverb), that together have a certain meaning.  For example: 

1.  The little mouse ran into the wall.  (The mouse went inside the wall.)
2.  She ran into her cousin at the movies.  (She saw her cousin by chance.  It wasn't planned.)

As you can see, the first sentence is a literal or exact translation, whereas the second sentence is a phrasal verb because it has a figurative meaning.  Phrasal verbs are difficult to learn because there are so many of them, and the meaning is not so obvious some of the time. 

Below is a sample list of phrasal verbs for all levels that everybody should know.  Please post any questions you may have! 

Beginning:
1.  put on: dress oneself in clothing or accessories (...hats, sunglasses)

• Before we go to the beach, I need to put on my bathing suit.

2.  take off: undress oneself

• When he goes to church, he takes off his hat.

3.  wake up: stop sleeping

• The alarm wakes me up every day, but I always hit the snooze button.

4.  get up:  get out of bed

• Although the alarm wakes me up at 7:00 am, I don't usually get up until 7:20.

5.  check in/out:  register at a hotel upon arrival/departure

• We checked in to the hotel late at night and then checked out early this morning.

Intermediate:
6.  figure out:  solve a problem or understand something

• I was at work until 8:00 pm trying to figure out a solution to the problems our clients are having.

7.  check out: look

• Wow!  Check out the stars...you can see so many in the desert.

8.  get along with:  have a good relationship with somebody

• Unlike most people, he really gets along with his mother-in-law.

9.  pass out:  go to sleep or lose consciousness

• I was so tired from working all day that when I got home, I didn't even have dinner.  I just passed out on my couch and didn't wake up until the next day!

10.  work out:  lift weights and/or exercise

• He works out at the gym in the morning and trains with the team in the afternoon. 

Advanced:
11.  catch up with: talk to somebody about what has happened since you last saw them

• I have to catch up with my mother because we haven't talked in a long time.

12.  come down with:  to get sick

• After traveling for 18 hours, I came down with the flu the next day.

13.  end up:  finally be or do something

• We didn't know what to do Saturday night, so we just ended up watching a movie at home.

14.  put up with:  tolerate

• I can't put up with your lies anymore.  

15.  stick with:  continue to do something

• If you want to lose weight, you have to stick with your diet, continually following it.