The Mini Book of Phrasal Verbs - Reading and Use of English

Essential phrasal verbs for Cambridge Reading and Use of English preparation, complete with definitions, Spanish equivalents, and contextual example sentences from Pikingli School.

come up with

To invent or devise (idear / inventar). Example: 'She…a great solution.'

make up for

To compensate (compensar). Example: 'He tried to … his mistake.'

put off

To postpone (posponer). Example: 'We had to… the meeting.'

bring up

To raise a topic or subject (sacar un tema). Example: 'She … an interesting point.'

take on

To accept or undertake responsibility (asumir responsabilidad). Example: 'He… too much work.'

come down to

To be reduced to or fundamentally depend on (reducirse a). Example: 'It all … to money.'

run out of

To have no more of something left (quedarse sin). Example: 'We … milk this morning.'

look forward to

To anticipate with pleasure (tener ganas de). Example: 'I … seeing you!'

get away with

To escape blame or punishment for a wrong action (salir impune de / salirse con la suya). Example: 'He … cheating.'

bring about

To cause or produce something (provocar / causar). Example: 'The storm … delays.'

put up with

To tolerate or endure (tolerar / aguantar). Example: 'I can't put up with this noise.'

come across

To find or meet by chance, or to give a particular impression (encontrarse con / dar la impresión de). Example: 'I …. an old photo.'

take up

To start doing a hobby/activity, or to occupy space/time (empezar / ocupar). Example: 'She … painting last year.'

set off

To start a journey, or to trigger an event (partir / desencadenar). Example: 'They … at dawn.'

break down

To stop functioning (of a machine), or to collapse emotionally (averiarse / venirse abajo). Example: 'The bus … on the way.'

get around to

To finally find the time to do something (acabar haciendo / encontrar tiempo). Example: 'I never … to cleaning.'

come up against

To face or encounter opposition or problems (enfrentarse a). Example: 'We strong opposition.'

phase out

To gradually discontinue or eliminate something (eliminar poco a poco). Example: 'The drug was … last year.'

wind up

To end or finish, or to annoy someone (acabar / fastidiar). Example: 'The party … at midnight.'

iron out

To resolve difficulties or refine details (resolver / pulir detalles). Example: 'They met to … the differences.'

carry through

To bring to a successful conclusion or complete successfully (sacar adelante / completar con éxito). Example: 'She managed to … the project.'

account for

To explain or justify (explicar, justificar). Example: 'How do you … the sudden drop in sales?'

act up

To behave badly or malfunction (portarse mal, funcionar mal). Example: 'My computer is … again.'

back down

To yield or withdraw a claim or argument (ceder). Example: 'He refused to ….'

bear with

To be patient with someone (tener paciencia con). Example: 'Please … me while I find the file.'

blow over

To pass or subside without serious consequences (pasar, calmarse). Example: 'I hope this scandal will … soon.'

boil down to

To be summarized as or amount essentially to (resumirse en). Example: 'It all … to communication.'

brush up on

To review or refresh knowledge of something (repasar, refrescar). Example: 'I need to … on my Italian.'

bump into

To meet someone by chance (encontrarse con). Example: 'I … my old teacher yesterday.'

call off

To cancel an event or arrangement (cancelar). Example: 'The meeting was … due to the storm.'

carry out

To execute, perform, or conduct (llevar a cabo). Example: 'They … a detailed investigation.'

catch up on

To do tasks in order to reach the current standard or get up to date (ponerse al día con). Example: 'I need to … on emails.'

check in

To register arrival at a hotel or airport (registrarse). Example: 'We… at the hotel at noon.'

check out

To look at/examine, or to settle the bill and leave a hotel (revisar / pagar y marcharse). Example: 'You should … this documentary.'

come down with

To catch or become sick with an illness (caer enfermo). Example: 'She's … the flu.'

count on

To rely or depend on someone (contar con). Example: 'You can … me anytime.'

cut back on

To reduce the amount or consumption of something (reducir). Example: 'I'm trying to… sugar.'

deal with

To handle, manage, or cope with a person or situation (lidiar con). Example: 'I had to … a difficult client.'

do without

To manage without having something (prescindir de). Example: 'I can't … coffee in the morning.'

drag on

To continue for an unnecessarily long time (alargarse). Example: 'The meeting … for hours.'

drop by

To make a brief or casual visit (pasar por). Example: 'Feel free to … whenever you want.'

fall apart

To break into pieces or fail completely (desmoronarse). Example: 'Her plan … at the last minute.'

fall for

To fall in love with someone or be deceived by a trick (enamorarse / caer en la trampa). Example: 'I … his charm instantly.'

figure out

To understand, solve, or work out a solution (resolver, entender). Example: 'I finally … how to fix it.'

fill in

To complete written information in a form or document (rellenar). Example: 'Please … this form.'

follow up

To pursue further action or monitor progress (hacer seguimiento). Example: 'I'll … with an email later.'

get ahead

To make progress or achieve success (progresar). Example: 'She's working hard to ….'

get along with

To have a friendly relationship with someone (llevarse bien con). Example: 'I … my coworkers.'

get by

To manage or survive with available resources or skills (arreglárselas). Example: 'I can … with basic French.'

get rid of

To eliminate, throw away, or free oneself from something (deshacerse de). Example: 'I need to … all this clutter.'

give in

To yield, surrender, or cease opposition (ceder). Example: 'I finally … to temptation.'

go ahead

To proceed or continue doing something (seguir adelante). Example: '…, I'm listening.'

go over

To review, examine, or check carefully (repasar). Example: 'Let's … your answers together.'

grow up

To develop from childhood to adulthood (crecer). Example: 'I … in a small village.'

hand in

To submit work or a document to someone in authority (entregar). Example: 'Don't forget to … your homework.'

hang out

To spend leisure time casually (pasar el rato). Example: 'We usually … at the mall.'

hold on

To wait for a short period of time (esperar). Example: '…, I'm coming!'

keep up with

To stay at the same pace or level as someone or something (seguir el ritmo). Example: 'I can't … her walking pace.'

kick off

To start or commence (empezar). Example: 'The concert … at 8 PM.'

lay off

To dismiss workers, usually because of economic reasons (despedir). Example: 'The company … 100 workers.'

leave out

To exclude or omit (omitir). Example: 'You … a very important detail.'

look after

To take care of someone or something (cuidar de). Example: 'I need someone to … my dog this weekend.'

look down on

To view someone as inferior or treat with contempt (menospreciar). Example: 'He … people with less education.'

look into

To investigate or examine the facts of an issue (investigar). Example: 'We're … the cause of the issue.'

look out

To be careful or watchful for danger (tener cuidado). Example: '…! There's a car coming.'