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 |
| call for | deserve, warrant | inseparable transitive | Your success calls for a celebration. |
| call off | cancel | separable transitive | The boss called the meeting off. |
| call on | visit for a short period of time | inseparable transitive | We called on our ailing neighbors. |
| call out | challenge to a fight, challenge the truthfulness of | separable transitive | The student called the teacher out about the wrong answer. |
| calm down | stop feeling strong emotions | intransitive | The baby finally calmed down. |
| cancel out | have the opposite effect | separable transitive | The payments canceled the debt out. |
| capitalize on | to use to an advantage | inseparable transitive | The crook capitalized on the confusion. |
| carry off | succeed | separable transitive | I can carry off the look. |
| carry on | continue | intransitive | Life carries on as usual. |
| carry out | complete | separable transitive | The criminals carried out the nefarious plan. |
| carry over | extend from one situation to the next | separable transitive | Personal problems often carry over into the workplace. |
| cart off | take away | separable transitive | The police carted the criminal off. |
| cash in on | make money from, take advantage of | inseparable transitive | He cashed in on the sale. |
| catch on | become popular | intransitive | That style will never catch on. |
| catch up on | learn about the latest news, information, or gossip | inseparable transitive | Talk to Sue to catch up on the juicy gossip. |
| check out | investigate | separable transitive | Check out the new teacher. |
| check out | borrow from a library | separable transitive | I want to check a book out./td> |
| cheer up | make feel better | separable transitive | Try to cheer her up. |
| chew out | chastise, criticize | separable transitive | He chewed me out. |
| chew over | think about | separable transitive | Chew the idea over. |
| chicken out | decide not to do something out of fear | intransitive | He chickened out of the fight. |
| chill out | relax | intransitive | Some people just cannot chill out. |
| chime in | suddenly say something | intransitive | She never chimes in during meetings. |
| chip in | help by offering money or other assistance | inseparable transitive | He chipped in a few bucks. |
| choke down | eat something unwillingly | separable transitive | The child choked down the vegetables. |
| choke up | become unable to speak | intransitive | She choked up during the memorial service. |
| clean out | clean the inside | separable transitive | She cleaned the closet out. |
| clean up | make something clean, organize | separable transitive | She cleaned the file cabinet up. |
| clear up | make tidy, make better | separable transitive | The medicine cleared the rash up. |
| cloud over | become covered with clouds, become negative | intransitive | His face clouded over with worry. |
| clown around | behave in a silly manner | intransitive | He is always clowning around when he should be serious. |
| come across | discover by chance | inseparable transitive | I came across the book while organizing the shelves. |
| come at | move towards, often aggressively | inseparable transitive | The dog came at me. |
| come before | precede | inseparable transitive | The chicken came before the egg. |
| come out | reveal the truth | intransitive | He came out about his crimes. |
| conk out | stop working, fall asleep | intransitive | My car conked out last week. |
| cook up | make quickly, invent | inseparable transitive | The criminal cooked up a new scheme. |
| cop out | avoid doing something | intransitive | The investor copped out at the last minute. |
| cough up | provide | separable transitive | He coughed up the money. |
| count against | make something more like to fail | inseparable transitive | Her inexperience will count against her. |
| count in | include | separable transitive | Count me in. |
| count on | trust | inseparable transitive | You can count on me. |
| cover up | hide | separable transitive | The police covered up the crime. |
| crack up | laugh a lot suddenly; become mentally ill | intransitive | She cracked up at the joke. |
| crank up | increase, improve | separable transitive | The company cranked up production. |
| crop up | arise | intransitive | More problems have cropped up. |
| cut back | reduce | separable transitive | The company cut production back. |
