Phrasal verbs are a common English verb form that consist of a verb followed by a p-word that functions as a particle. To learn more about some of the most common phrasal verbs in the English language, click on a letter in the following menu to browse the Phrasal Verb Dictionary in alphabetical order.
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Note: When a word entry includes a p-word enclosed in parentheses, the phrasal verb is a phrasal-prepositional verb.
| Phrasal Verb | Definition | Category | Example |
| face off | disagree and fight about something | intransitive | The bride and the groom faced off over the cake flavor. |
| face up to | acknowledge something difficult or embarrassing | inseparable transitive | She faced up to the truth. |
| factor in | include | separable transitive | You must factor taxes in. |
| factor out | exclude | separable transitive | You should factor any tips out. |
| fade away | before less strong before disappearing | intransitive | His fame just faded away. |
| fade in | become gradually louder, brighter, or clearer | intransitive | The sound of the traffic fades in during the early morning hours. |
| fade out | become gradually quieter, less bright, or less clear | intransitive | The picture faded out at the end of the film. |
| fall apart | break into pieces | intransitive | The cake fell apart during the car trip. |
| fall back on | use as a last resort | inseparable transitive | I can fall back on my writing if I lose my job. |
| fall behind | go slower than scheduled | intransitive | He fell behind in his studies. |
| fall for | become attracted to | inseparable transitive | He fell for her hard. |
| fall in | collapse | intransitive | The roof of the mine fell in, killing the miners trapped inside. |
| fall in with | become friends with, join | inseparable transitive | She fell in with a bad crowd. |
| fall off | decrease | intransitive | Profits fell off after the holidays. |
| fall out with | have an argument with | inseparable transitive | We fell out with our family after we got married. |
| fall through | fail to happen | intransitive | Our weekend plans fell through. |
| fall to | become someone’s responsibility | inseparable transitive | His duties fell to me when he left. |
| fan out | move away | intransitive | The search team fanned out over the area. |
| fancy up | make more attractive | separable transitive | You should fancy your house up before trying to sell. |
| fatten up | give more of something to increase size | separable transitive | I advise you to fatten up your retirement fund. |
| feel out | access the situation | separable transitive | He felt his boss out before asking for a raise. |
| feel up | grope | separable transitive | A pervert felt me up on the train. |
| feel up to | have the energy or desire to do something | inseparable transitive | He feels up to taking a walk around the block. |
| ferret out | find by searching for | separable transitive | The spy ferreted the information out of the attractive blonde. |
| fiddle around | waste time | intransitive | He fiddled around all afternoon. |
| figure on | expect | inseparable transitive | I figure on fifteen people attending the party. |
| figure out | solve, understand | separable transitive | The child figured the problem out. |
| fill in | complete | separable transitive | Please fill all the blanks in on the test. |
| fill in | substitute | intransitive | Who will fill in when you are out? |
| fill in for | substitute for | inseparable transitive | He filled in for me when I was sick. |
| fill out | complete | separable transitive | Please fill the application out. |
| fill out | become bigger or stronger | intransitive | The young man has really filled out. |
| filter out | remove unwanted substances | separable transitive | Filter the impurities out with a colander. |
| find out | discover | separable transitive | The police will found out the truth. |
| finish off | complete | separable transitive | The sad woman finished the ice cream off. |
| finish up | finally complete | separable transitive | The child finished his homework up. |
| fire up | make excited | separable transitive | The cheerleaders fired up the crowd. |
| firm up | tone, make more solid | separable transitive | We firmed up the agreement. |
| fish for | attempt to make someone say or do something | inseparable transitive | That insecure woman always fishes for compliments. |
| fix up | repair, renovate, remodel | separable transitive | Grandpa fixed the old truck up. |
| flag down | attempt to stop by waving | separable transitive | The businessman flagged a taxi down. |
| flake out on | cancel at the last minute | inseparable transitive | My boyfriend flaked out on our date again. |
| flesh out | add more details to | separable transitive | The writer fleshed out his story. |
| flip off | give the middle finger | separable transitive | He flipped me off. |
| fluff up | make appear bigger or better | separable transitive | She fluffed her report up with needless information. |
| flush out | force something or someone out of hiding | separable transitive | The police flushed the culprit out. |
| follow through (with) | complete | intransitive | He never follows through with his promises. |
| fool around | waste time | intransitive | Stop fooling around! |
| fork over | give unwillingly | separable transitive | Fork over the cash! |
| free up | make available | separable transitive | Can you free up some time for me? |
| freeze out | exclude | separable transitive | Her former friends froze her out. |
| freeze up | suddenly become afraid | intransitive | She froze up during her speech. |
| freshen up | make cleaner or more attractive | separable transitive | She freshened her bathroom up with some new paint. |
| frown on | disapprove of, condemn | inseparable transitive | The administration frowns on student-teacher relationships. |
| fuck over | treat badly | separable transitive | My boss fucked me over at the meeting. |
| fuck up | mess up, damage, spoil | separable transitive | He fucked the report up. |
| fuss at | complain about something or someone repeatedly and annoying | inseparable transitive | My mom fussed at me all night about my new wardrobe. |
