The Essential Phrasal Verbs For Cambridge/ Michigan/ PTE ect Exams And How To Use Them Correctly.

As a teacher, I have specialized in international exam preparation classes for over 20 years, and below is a list of 120 phrasal verbs which I have generally taught as they are the ones most often seen used in international English exams. 

To an exam, you need to have a broad/wide knowledge of English vocabulary, the majority of the below phrasal verbs are advanced (you wouldn't be expected to know what they mean or be taught them when studying lower levels of English.

However, in addition to using advanced phrasal verbs in exams, you will also find many phrasal verbs used which are less advanced. 

So what you need to do is to learn what the main two to three meanings of a phrasal verb are and in what situations they are used in.

In order to help you learn these meanings and uses, for some of the phrasal verbs in the below list, I have written down what the meaning or meanings are.

For the other phrasal verbs, I would recommend that you learn their meanings through an online dictionary and learn the first two or three meanings which are listed for it there.

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Remembering these meanings

When you learn the meaning or meanings/uses that a phrasal verb has, make sure that you use them. I would recommend that you create one or two sentences in your own words that use the meaning of the phrasal verb you have just learnt. You can either write this down or say it out loud (it's your choice). Doing this will help you to remember this meaning in the future.

Learn the different meanings

Some of these phrasal verbs only have one meaning, but the majority have multiple ones. You probably already know the most commonly used meaning for many of the below phrasal verbs, however, in most exams, they often use meanings of phrasal verbs which are less commonly used.

1. back down – stop demanding something
2. break down – stop working
3. break up – to end; to separate (a marriage / a relationship / etc.)
4. bring up (a child) – raise (a child)
5. bump into – to meet someone unexpectedly
6. call for – demand / request
7. call off – cancel (an event)
8. carry on – continue
9. catch on – to become popular (an idea or a style); to understand
10. cheer up – make happier
11. come across – find by chance
12. come into (money) – inherit
13. come round – come to your house
14. come up with (an idea) – think of and suggest an idea
15. come up – be mentioned, arise or appear (in class / an exam / a meeting)
16. count on – to rely on
17. cut down on – reduce the amount you consume
18. cut off – separate / isolate / interrupt
19. cut out – stop doing / eating something
20. do up – fasten, button up clothes; repair, redecorate or modernize a building or room
21. dress up – put on different clothes in order to disguise yourself
22. drop by – to visit informally or unexpectedly
23. drop off – to take something (or someone) to a place and leave it there
24. drop out – stop taking part in (a competition, a university, etc.)
25. end up – an end result of something planned or unplanned
    
    
    
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26. fall for (someone) – fall in love with
27. fall out with (someone) – argue and stop being friendly with someone
28. find out – discover
29. follow up – find out more about something; take further action
30. get along with (someone) – have a good relationship with
31. get away (for the weekend) – go away for a period of time for a break
32. get away with – not be punished for doing something
33. get by – manage to survive / live
34. get on with (someone) – have a good relationship with
35. get on with (something) – start or continue doing something (especially work)
36. get over (someone) – recover after the end of a relationship with someone
37. get over (something) – recover from
38. get together – meet (usually for social reasons)
39. get rid of – eliminate
40. give away (secrets) – reveal
41. give back – return
42. give in (homework) – submit
43. give in (to someone’s requests) – agree to something you do not want to
44. give off (a smell) – produce and send into the air
45. give out (information) – announce or broadcast information
46. give out – distribute to a group of people
47. give up – to stop trying to do something (often because it is too difficult)
48. go along with – support an idea or agree with someone’s opinion
49. go off – explode; become bad (food)
50. go on – to continue
    
    
    
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51. go out with – have a romantic relationship with someone
52. go through with – complete a promise or plan
53. grow apart – get distant from someone, like a friend
54. grow up – slowly become an adult
55. hand in – submit school work, submit documentation
56. hand out – to distribute to a group of people, usually free
57. hang around – to wait or spend time somewhere, doing nothing
58. hang out – spend time relaxing (informal)
59. hang up – to hang clothes or an object on a hook or line; to end a phone call
60. head for – go towards
61. hold back – prevent someone from making progress
62. hurry up – do something more quickly
63. keep on – to continue
64. let down – disappoint
65. let off – give someone a lighter punishment than they expected (or not punish at all)
66. look after – take care of
67. look down on – feel superior to
68. look for – try to find
69. look forward to – feel happy about something that is going to happen
70. look into – investigate
71. look up – find information about (e.g. a word in a dictionary)
72. look up to – admire and respect
73. make up for – compensate for
74. make up with (someone) – become friends again
75. make up (something) – invent (stories, excuses)
    
    
    
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76. move on – change to a different job, activity or place
77. move out – stop living in a house or flat
78. pass out – lose consciousness
79. pay back – return money
80. pay for – purchase
81. pay off – finish paying for something; have a positive result from hard work
82. pick up – meet / collect someone (e.g. at the station / from school)
83. point out – to draw attention to something or someone
84. put away – put something back in the correct place
85. put off – postpone
86. put on (an event/a show) – organize an event
87. put on (clothes /make-up) – place something on your body
88. put on (weight) – increase (weight)
89. put out – extinguish (e.g. fire)
90. put up (for the night) – accommodate
91. put up (your hand) – lift into the air
92. put up with – tolerate
93. rip off – charge someone too much for something
94. run into – meet by accident
95. run out of – use up (e.g. money, petrol, time)
96. set off – start a journey
97. set up – establish/start (e.g. a company)
98. show off – try to impress people by telling or showing them what you are capable of
99. shut down – to close
100. sort out – arrange or order by classes or categories; find a solution
     
     
     
     
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101. stand for – to represent
102. stand out – be easy to see because of being different
103. take after (someone) – resembles a member of your family in appearance, behaviour, or character
104. take off (something) – to remove from a surface or your body (clothes)
105. take off – leave the ground (e.g. a plane)
106. take on – attempt something new; employ
107. take over – take control of
108. take to – start to like, especially after only a short time
109. take up – start doing (a hobby)
110. tell off – speak angrily to someone who has done something wrong
111. throw away – get rid of something you do not need anymore
112. turn back – return towards the place you started from
113. turn down – reject or refuse
114. turn into – to transform
115. turn off – to disconnect (e.g. a computer)
116. turn on – to connect (e.g. the TV)
117. turn up – arrive, usually unexpectedly, early or late
118. use up – finish a supply of something
119. wear out – to use something until it becomes unusable
120. work out – think about and find a solution; do exercise.
     
     
     
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