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.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M
N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
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 |
| magic away | make disappear quickly | separable transitive | Her assistant magicked the situation away. |
| major in | study primarily | inseparable transitive | I majored in English studies. |
| make away with | steal | inseparable transitive | The robber made away with all the jewels. |
| make off with | steal | inseparable transitive | A thief made off with my purse. |
| make out | decipher | separable transitive | I cannot make out your handwriting. |
| make out | write | separable transitive | My boss made a check out to me. |
| make out | succeed | intransitive | He makes out pretty well with his writing. |
| make out | progress | intransitive | How is your son making out at college? |
| make out (with) | kiss passionately | intransitive | Harry made out with Ginny. |
| make over | redo, do again | separable transitive | Please make the biscuits over. |
| make up | invent | separable transitive | Did you make the story up? |
| make up | complete something previously missed | separable transitive | Will the teacher let you make the exam up? |
| make up | put on cosmetics | separable transitive | She makes her face up in just minutes. |
| make up (for) | compensate for | intransitive | My husband made up for forgetting my birthday. |
| make up (with) | reconcile | intransitive | You should make up with him. |
| map out | plan in detail | separable transitive | We mapped our vacation out. |
| march on (with) | continue | intransitive | I marched on with my plans. |
| mark down | lower in price | separable transitive | The store marked pineapples down. |
| mark down | write, make note of | separable transitive | I marked the date down on my calendar. |
| mark off | separate | separable transitive | The police marked the crime scene off. |
| mark off | check as finished, finish, delete | separable transitive | I marked some items off the list. |
| mark out | separate | separable transitive | She marked the spot for the garden out. |
| mark out | indicate, denote | separable transitive | The teacher marked the mistakes out. |
| mark up | increase in price | separable transitive | The store has marked school supplies up. |
| marry off | give away for marriage | separable transitive | Her father married her off. |
| mash up | crush together | separable transitive | He mashed the ingredients up. |
| match up | coordinate | separable transitive | The woman matched the couples up. |
| max out | use all | separable transitive | I maxed my credit cards out. |
| measure up | be good enough | intransitive | He will never measure up. |
| meet up (with) | join | intransitive | Can Dad meet up with me tomorrow night? |
| mellow down | relax, calm down | separable transitive | He mellowed down after a few drinks. |
| mellow out | relax, calm down | separable transitive | You need to mellow your wife out. |
| melt down | turn to water | separable transitive | She melted the candles down. |
| melt down | collapse | intransitive | He melted down during the meeting. |
| mess around | behave stupidly, silly, or without purposed | intransitive | The twins just mess around after school. |
| mess up | make untidy, dirty, or damaged | separable transitive | The baby messed the TV up again. |
| mess with | become involved (usually negative) | intransitive | Do not mess with the toxic chemicals. |
| mill about | spend time aimlessly | intransitive | I want to mill about this weekend. |
| mill around | spend time aimlessly | intransitive | The old men milled around during the afternoon. |
| minor in | study secondarily | inseparable transitive | I minored in creative writing. |
| miss out (on) | lose out, fail to benefit | intransitive | I missed out on a great deal. |
| mist over | become covered with water | intransitive | Her eyes misted over. |
| mix in | add | separable transitive | Mix the chocolate chips in by hand. |
| mix up | confuse | separable transitive | She mixed the dates up. |
| mix up | blend, combine | separable transitive | The baker mixed the cake batter up. |
| mix up | make lively | separable transitive | Mix the party up with some disco music. |
| mock up | create a model | separable transitive | The builder mocked a sample design up. |
| monkey around | act silly | intransitive | The children monkeyed around all day. |
| mop up | clean (usually liquid) | separable transitive | She mopped the spill up. |
| mouth off | speak rudely | intransitive | The little boy mouthed off again. |
| move ahead | progress | separable transitive | We moved the start date ahead. |
| move along | progress | separable transitive | The police moved the gawkers along. |
| move away | leave | separable transitive | Her parents moved her away. |
| move in | begin living in a new place | intransitive | The neighbors just moved in. |
| move in on | approach | inseparable transitive | The lion moved in on its prey. |
| move in with | start living with | inseparable transitive | Her fiancé moved in with her. |
| move on | leave, go elsewhere | intransitive | The squatters moved on. |
| move on to | start a new activity | intransitive | He moved on to fractions last week. |
| move out | leave | intransitive | The annoying neighbors finally moved out. |
| move over | change places | separable transitive | She moved the cake over on the counter. |
| move up | lift, increase, advance | separable transitive | They moved the wedding date up. |
| mow down | kill a large number | separable transitive | The gunman mowed down the crowd. |
| muck up | mess up, spoil, ruin | separable transitive | An accident mucked my travel plans up. |
| muddle through | continue despite difficulties | inseparable transitive | He muddled through his homework. |
| mull over | think about carefully, consider carefully | separable transitive | She mulled the idea over. |
| muss up | mess up, spoil, ruin | separable transitive | The wind mussed my hair up. |
| muster up | gather, congregate | separable transitive | Muster the troops up for battle! |
