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To Be

One way to say you are leaving is to say you are 'off'.

• I'm off now. See you tomorrow.
• It's time I was off or I'll be late for the meeting.

If you have no more supply/stock of something you are 'out of' the item.

• We're out of ink for the photocopier. Can you go out and get some?
• I'm afraid you are out of luck. I sold the last one an hour ago.

If you are depressed and miserable, you are 'down'.

• He's been very down since he lost his job.
• Why are you so down today?

When you have to submit something by a certain date, it has to be 'in' by then.

• The application has to be in before Friday.
• The report was supposed to be in last week but I'm still working on it.

If something is 'on', it is happening at the moment.

• There's a good play on at the theatre. (or should that be theater?)
• I'm going to London because the sales are on.

If somebody is not present, they are 'away'.

• I'm afraid he's away on holiday.
• I'm going to be away for a few days.

If food is no longer fresh, it is 'off'.

• I think this milk is off. Smell it.
• That melon is off. Don't eat it.

If you know some inside information, often a secret, you are 'in on' the information.

• Is Sarah in on our plans? Has anybody told her yet?
• He won't let me in on the secret.

If someone is 'up to' something, they are doing something secretive that you are not supposed to know about.

• I don't know exactly what is happening but Tom is up to something.
• Why all the whispering? What are you up to?

If someone is 'on' something, they are taking something as a form of drug.

• He's on 50 cigarettes a day at the moment.
• She's on her third cup of coffee and it's only 9 o'clock.

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To Bring

If you 'bring something about', you cause it to happen.

• How can we bring about change in this old-fashioned company?
• We need to bring about a change in attitude.

If you 'bring someone along' with you, they come with you.

• I want to bring along John to the meeting, if that is OK.
• Why not bring Simon along, if he's interested?

If something 'brings back' memories, it reminds you of the past.

• That photo brings back memories of our visit to Thailand.
• Meeting him brought back memories of when we worked together.

If you 'bring down' a price, you reduce it.

• We need to bring down the price to something more affordable.
• They're bringing down the price of all their cars.

If you 'bring forward' a meeting, you arrange it for an earlier time.

• I want to bring forward the meeting to Tuesday.
• Can we bring forward the meeting by an hour?

If you 'bring someone in on' a discussion, you ask them to join in with your discussion.

• I want to bring in John on this as he is an expert.
• We need to bring in an outside consultant.

If you 'bring out' a new product, you introduce it to the market.

• I hear they have brought out a new model.
• We're bringing it out early next year.

If you 'bring someone round', you persuade them.

• He was against the idea but Sally brought him round.
• How can we bring him round?

If you 'bring up' a subject, you mention it.

• Mark brought up the problem with the heating.
• Any other problems that you want to bring up?

If you 'bring on' somebody, you train them to be better.

• Martin always brings on the trainees really well.
• We try to bring on people quickly and promote them.

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To Come 1

1. Sometimes you keep something even though you don't need it at the time but because you think in the future it might 'come in useful'.

• Keep that. It might come in useful one day.
• I don't like learning English but it will come in useful when I get a job.

2. When something is falling, you can say that it is 'coming down'.

• The football match was stopped because the rain was coming down so heavily.
• Don't buy an Ipod yet. The prices will be coming down soon.

3. When a book is published, it 'comes out'.

• The magazine comes out once a month.
• My new book comes out in August.

4.If you 'come on to' a particular topic or idea, you start discussing it.

• Can we come on to the subject of parking?
• Before we come on to that, does anybody have any comments?

5. If you 'come across' something, you find it by accident.

• I came across these old photos when I was cleaning out my cupboard.
• She came across Richard in the middle of Oxford.

6. If a feeling 'comes over you', it affects you, often in an uncharacteristic way.

• I'm sorry for shouting. I don't know what came over me.
• A look of pleasure came over her face.

7. If a problem or situation 'comes up' it happens. (We can also say 'crops up'.)

• A big problem came up at work.
• Something has come up and I can't meet you.

8. If you 'come up with' a plan or idea, you think of it or suggest it.

• Peter came up with a good idea today.
• Can anybody come up with a solution?

9. If somebody 'comes across' as having a particular characteristic, they have given you the impression that they are like this.

• When you first meet Susan, she comes across as a shy person but in fact she is quite self-confident.
• Do you know that you come across as very arrogant?

10. When you are talking about the results of a situation, you can talk about what 'comes of' the situation.

• I'll let you know what comes of the meeting.
• No great harm came from it.

11. If an event or action 'comes off', it is successful or effective.

• I hope this high risk strategy comes off for us.
• I don't think it is going to come off.

12. If an idea 'comes upon' you, it develops without your really being aware of it.

• The idea came upon me when I was out walking the dog.
• I came upon the solution by pure chance.

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Phrasal Verbs with Down 2

If you 'lie down' you go for a rest on a bed or a sofa.

• You look exhausted. Lie down for a while.
• I lie down for ten minutes after lunch every day.

If you 'slow down', you go less quickly than before.

• As I have got older, I seem to have slowed down and to be able to get through less work.
• Production has slowed down compared with last year.

If you 'calm down', you stop being angry or excited.

• He got very angry at first but laughed about it when he had calmed down a bit.
• You need to calm down. You are much too emotional.

If someone or something needs to 'cool down', they are too hot.

• I am going to take a shower to cool myself down a bit.
• The coffee is too hot to drink. Let it cool down a bit.

If you 'cut down' something, it can mean that you reduce the number.

• We need to cut down our workforce by 500 people.
• You should cut down the number of cigarettes you smoke.

If an argument 'falls down', it is very weak.

• Your argument falls down when you look at the inflation rate.
• The argument falls down when you take costs into account.

If you 'mark down' a price, you reduce it.

• The shirts have been marked down by 50%.
• Prices have been marked down by 10% across the board.

If things 'quieten down' , they become less noisy.

• I am not going to speak until you all quieten down a bit.
• It was very hectic earlier but things have quietened down now.

If you 'tear something down', you pull it with force from a wall or a notice board.

• He tore down the poster that the union had put up.
• Somebody has torn down the safety notice I put up.

If you 'tone down' something, you make it less extreme.

• You need to tone down the language in your letter. It is too hostile.
• We need to tone down the colors on the website. They are too bright.

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Emotions Phrasal Verbs

If something 'gets you down', it makes you feel unhappy.

• This uncertainty is beginning to get me down.
• The way everybody keeps complaining really gets me down

If somebody or something makes you feel upset or unhappy, they 'get to' you. This is an informal expression.

• The way he whistles all the time when we are working really gets to me.
• The heat is really getting to me. We need air conditioning.

If something makes you very unhappy, it 'tears you apart'.

• It tears me apart to know that I lost that job because of my own stupidity.
• It would tear me apart if something I said made you leave.

If you are 'put out', you are annoyed.

• I was really put out when he turned down the job.
• He seemed a bit put out that we hadn't invited him to speak.

If you 'cheer up', you start to feel happier.

• Cheer up. Things are not so bad.
• I bought a new Ipod to cheer myself up.

If you 'perk up', you suddenly become happier, cheerful or more energetic. It is also possible to 'perk someone up'.

• Your visit really made him perk up.
• He was being miserable but he perked up when Mary arrived.

If you 'brighten up', you suddenly look or feel happier.

• She brightened up when she heard the good news.
• You need to brighten up. Your long face is putting off the customers.

If you 'liven up', you become more energetic or cheerful. You can also 'liven up' a place, event or person.

• You need to liven up a bit. You're so miserable it is making everybody feel unhappy.
• We need to liven up the party. Everyone looks miserable.

If you 'calm down', you stop feeling angry, upset or excited. It's also possible to 'calm someone down'.

• You need to calm down a bit. You're too excited.
• Calm down. Let me explain.

If you have had an experience that has made you feel unhappy, you need to 'get over' it.

• It took me a year to get over being made redundant.
• You need to get over your disappointment and move on with your life.

If you are feeling sad or unhappy, you can force yourself out of this mood – you can 'snap out of it'. This is an informal expression.

• You need to snap out of this mood and do something positive.
• I hope he snaps out of this soon.

If you have been acting emotionally and unreasonably because you are upset or angry, you need to 'pull yourself together' and act reasonably.

• Pull yourself together and stop this stupid mood.
• I need some time alone to pull myself together.

If you are so excited about something that you behave in a silly or hasty way, you are 'carried away' by the idea.

• I got carried away reading my book and didn't get any sleep.
• We mustn't get carried away with our enthusiasm. We must exercise reasonable judgment.

If you 'freak out', you start behaving in a very strange or violent way. This is an informal expression. You can also 'freak someone out'.

• I freaked out when I saw my boyfriend kissing another girl.
• It freaked me out to discover that the woman I was talking to was really a man.

If you 'flip out', you start to behave in a very excited or strange way. This is informal and mainly American.

• He flipped out when they wouldn't let him on the flight because he was too late.
• The children flipped out when they met Mickey Mouse.

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