English Phrasal Verbs: 300 With Grammar and Examples

Knowing what it means is not enough. You also have to know where the object goes.

300 cardsLast updated 2026-08-17

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Phrasal verbs are the point where advanced learners still sound wrong. Not because the meanings are hard to look up, but because each one carries a grammar rule that no dictionary entry makes obvious. You can turn the lights off or turn off the lights, but you can only turn them off — never turn off them. You look after a child, and you can never look a child after. Get away with takes its object after both particles. Learn the meaning without the pattern and you will produce sentences that are understandable and audibly non-native. This deck covers 300 phrasal verbs. Every card gives the meaning, states in one line whether the verb is separable, inseparable, intransitive or three-part, and shows an original sentence with the object in its correct place. Cards are tagged by that grammatical type and by theme — work, communication, relationships, money, travel, problems, daily life — so you can drill only the separable ones, or only what an office day needs. Import it and the deck joins your spaced-repetition schedule, and what stays in rotation is the set whose word order you still have to think about.

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What's inside

Showing 100 representative cards from the full 300-card deck.

Front	Back
bring about — what does it mean?	to cause something to happen. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
bring back — what does it mean?	to reintroduce; to return. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
bring out — what does it mean?	to release a product. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
call back — what does it mean?	to return a phone call. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
call on — what does it mean?	to visit; to ask someone to act. the object always follows the particle.
carry on — what does it mean?	to continue. it takes no object.
carry over — what does it mean?	to postpone to a later period. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
catch up — what does it mean?	to reach the same level. it takes no object.
check in — what does it mean?	to register at a hotel or airport. it takes no object.
cheer up — what does it mean?	to become happier. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
come across — what does it mean?	to seem; to find by chance. the object always follows the particle.
come back — what does it mean?	to return. it takes no object.
come out — what does it mean?	to be published; to be revealed. it takes no object.
come up — what does it mean?	to arise. it takes no object.
cut back on — what does it mean?	to reduce. the object always follows both particles.
cut off — what does it mean?	to disconnect; to isolate. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
deal with — what does it mean?	to handle. the object always follows the particle.
do up — what does it mean?	to fasten; to renovate. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
draw up — what does it mean?	to prepare a document. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
drop in — what does it mean?	to visit without arranging it. it takes no object.
drop out — what does it mean?	to leave a course or race. it takes no object.
face up to — what does it mean?	to accept something difficult. the object always follows both particles.
fall behind — what does it mean?	to fail to keep pace. it takes no object.
fall out — what does it mean?	to quarrel. it takes no object.
figure out — what does it mean?	to work out; to understand. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
fill out — what does it mean?	to complete a form. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
find out — what does it mean?	to discover. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
get along — what does it mean?	to have a good relationship. it takes no object.
get away — what does it mean?	to escape; to take a holiday. it takes no object.
get back — what does it mean?	to return; to recover. it takes no object.
get in — what does it mean?	to enter; to arrive. it takes no object.
get off — what does it mean?	to leave a vehicle; to finish work. the object always follows the particle.
get on with — what does it mean?	to continue; to relate well to. the object always follows both particles.
get over — what does it mean?	to recover from. the object always follows the particle.
get through — what does it mean?	to finish; to make contact. the object always follows the particle.
get up — what does it mean?	to rise from bed. it takes no object.
give back — what does it mean?	to return something. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
give out — what does it mean?	to distribute; to stop working. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
go after — what does it mean?	to pursue. the object always follows the particle.
go along with — what does it mean?	to agree to. the object always follows both particles.
go down — what does it mean?	to decrease; to sink. it takes no object.
go off — what does it mean?	to explode; to go bad; to sound. it takes no object.
go out — what does it mean?	to leave home socially; to be extinguished. it takes no object.
go through — what does it mean?	to experience; to examine. the object always follows the particle.
go up — what does it mean?	to increase; to be built. it takes no object.
go without — what does it mean?	to manage without. the object always follows the particle.
hand out — what does it mean?	to distribute. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
hang on — what does it mean?	to wait; to hold tightly. it takes no object.
hang up — what does it mean?	to end a phone call. it takes no object.
hold up — what does it mean?	to delay; to rob. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
keep out — what does it mean?	to stay outside. it takes no object.
keep up with — what does it mean?	to stay level with. the object always follows both particles.
lay off — what does it mean?	to make redundant. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
let down — what does it mean?	to disappoint. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
let off — what does it mean?	to excuse; to detonate. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
look ahead — what does it mean?	to plan for the future. it takes no object.
look back — what does it mean?	to think about the past. it takes no object.
look into — what does it mean?	to investigate. the object always follows the particle.
look up — what does it mean?	to search for information; to improve. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
move in — what does it mean?	to start living somewhere. it takes no object.
pass out — what does it mean?	to lose consciousness; to distribute. it takes no object.
pick out — what does it mean?	to select; to distinguish. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
pull through — what does it mean?	to survive a crisis. it takes no object.
put down — what does it mean?	to write; to criticise; to set down. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
put out — what does it mean?	to extinguish; to inconvenience. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
put up with — what does it mean?	to tolerate. the object always follows both particles.
run through — what does it mean?	to rehearse; to use up. the object always follows the particle.
set out — what does it mean?	to begin a journey; to state clearly. it takes no object.
show off — what does it mean?	to display in order to impress. it takes no object.
sit down — what does it mean?	to take a seat. it takes no object.
stand out — what does it mean?	to be noticeable. it takes no object.
take after — what does it mean?	to resemble a relative. the object always follows the particle.
take in — what does it mean?	to absorb information; to shelter. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
take over — what does it mean?	to assume control. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
talk over — what does it mean?	to discuss thoroughly. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
try on — what does it mean?	to test clothing for fit. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
turn off — what does it mean?	to switch off. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
turn up — what does it mean?	to arrive; to increase volume. it takes no object.
watch out — what does it mean?	to be careful. it takes no object.
write off — what does it mean?	to dismiss as worthless; to cancel a debt. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
add up to — what does it mean?	to amount to. the object always follows both particles.
ask after — what does it mean?	to enquire about someone's health. the object always follows the particle.
back up — what does it mean?	to support; to make a copy; to reverse. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
boil down to — what does it mean?	to be essentially. the object always follows both particles.
break off — what does it mean?	to end suddenly; to detach. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
build up — what does it mean?	to increase gradually. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
buy out — what does it mean?	to purchase a whole share. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
clear out — what does it mean?	to empty; to leave. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
come between — what does it mean?	to damage a relationship. the object always follows the particle.
come to — what does it mean?	to regain consciousness; to amount to. the object always follows the particle.
crack down on — what does it mean?	to enforce strictly. the object always follows both particles.
dress up — what does it mean?	to wear formal clothes. it takes no object.
fight back — what does it mean?	to resist. it takes no object.
give off — what does it mean?	to emit. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
heat up — what does it mean?	to make warmer. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
hold off — what does it mean?	to delay; to keep at a distance. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
jot down — what does it mean?	to write quickly. an object can sit between the verb and the particle, and a pronoun object must.
live on — what does it mean?	to survive on; to continue to exist. the object always follows the particle.
make do with — what does it mean?	to manage with what is available. the object always follows both particles.
open up — what does it mean?	to become communicative; to start trading. it takes no object.

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What is in the deck?

124 separable verbs, 50 inseparable verbs, 94 intransitive verbs and 32 three-part verbs, 300 in total. One phrasal verb per card, so nothing appears twice.

Why does separability matter so much?

Because it is the one thing you cannot guess and cannot avoid. With a separable verb a pronoun object must go in the middle: turn it off, not turn off it. With an inseparable verb it must not: look after them, never look them after. Get it wrong and the sentence is ungrammatical, however good your vocabulary is.

What about verbs with several meanings?

The card carries the meanings that share the same grammar, separated by a semicolon, so you learn them as one item rather than as unrelated cards. Where a second sense behaves differently enough to need its own pattern, it is written into the meaning line rather than split off, keeping one phrasal verb to one card.

Which exams is this useful for?

Phrasal verbs appear across IELTS, TOEFL, TOEIC, Cambridge B2 and C1, and every business English test, because they are how fluent English actually talks. The deck is organised by grammar and theme rather than by exam, so the same 300 verbs serve whichever one you are sitting.

Editorial method and sources

Memly's editors use the primary sources below to check scope and terminology, then independently write and review the cards.

U.S. Department of State: phrasal verbs