Phrasal Verb C

  • call after|Name someone after somebody else|She was CALLED Rose AFTER her late grandmother.|_
  • call around|Visit|I CALLED AROUND but she wasn’t in.|_
  • call at|Enter a harbour or port|The cruise ship CALLED AT Malta.|1
  • call back|Return a phonecall|I must CALL her BACK when we get to the office.|1
  • call for|Demand|The Opposition party CALLED FOR the minister’s resignation after the scandal broke.|1
  • call forth|Make something happen|The protests CALLED FORTH a strong reaction from the police.|1
  • call in|Get someone to come and do a job|We had to CALL IN a plumber because the sink was leaking and I had no idea how to fix it.|1
  • call off|Cancel|The concert had to be CALLED OFF because the singer went down with a bad case of flu.|1
  • call on|Ask for help|The President CALLED ON the wealthy countries for financial aid after the floods destroyed much of the country’s agriculture.|1
  • call out|Expose or accuse someone of wrongdoing or incompetence|He CALLED them OUT over awarding contracts to family members.|1
  • call round|Visit|I CALLED ROUND on my way home but no one was in.|_
  • call up|Summon someone for military service|The army CALLED UP the reserve soldiers when the war broke out.|1
  • calm down|Stop being angry or emotionally excited|When I lose my temper, it takes ages for me to CALM DOWN again.|1
  • cancel out|Have an opposite effect on something that has happened, taking things back to the beginning|The airport taxes CANCELLED OUT the savings we had made on the flight tickets.|1
  • cap off|Finish or complete, often with some decisive action|She CAPPED OFF the meeting with a radical proposal.|1
  • care for|Like|I don’t CARE FOR fizzy drinks; I prefer water.|1
  • carried away|Get so emotional that you lose control|The team got CARRIED AWAY when they won the championship and started shouting and throwing things around.|_
  • carry forward|Include a figure in a later calculation|They CARRIED FORWARD their losses to the next financial year.|1
  • carry off|Win, succeed|She CARRIED OFF the first prize in the competition.|1
  • carry on|Continue|CARRY ON quietly with your work until the substitute teacher arrives.|1
  • carry on with|Have an affair|He’s been CARRYING ON WITH someone at work for years.|_
  • carry out|Perform a task|The government is CARRYING OUT test on growing genetically modified crops.|1
  • carry over|Continue past a certain point|The meeting CARRIED OVER into the afternoon because there was so much to talk about.|1
  • carry through|Complete successfully|They CARRIED the reforms THROUGH despite the opposition.|1
  • cart off|Take someone away, usually under arrest or to prison|The police CARTED them OFF to question them.|1
  • carve out|Create or get a area where you can be special or successful|She’s CARVED OUT a career in photojournalism.|1
  • carve up|Divide into smaller pieces|They CARVED the company UP and sold a lot off.|1
  • cash in|Convert shares, bonds, casino chips, etc, into money|They CASHED IN their bonds and spent the money on a holiday.|1
  • cash in on|Benefit or make money on something, especially if done unfairly|The opposition party are CASHING IN ON the government’s unpopularity.|1
  • cash out|Illegally access a bank account or credit card and steal money|A hacker got my credit card details from my computer and CASHED OUT a lot of money.|1
  • cash up|Count all the money taken in a shop or business at the end of the day|After the shop closed, they have to CASH UP before they can go home.|_
  • cast about for|Try to find something|They’re CASTING ABOUT FOR support.|_
  • cast around for|Try to find something|She was CASTING AROUND FOR people to help her.|_
  • cast aside|Dispose, get rid of, ignore because you no longer like something or someone|He CAST her ASIDE.|1
  • cast off|Dispose, get rid of|They CAST OFF any semblance of politeness and attacked us viciously.|1
  • cast out|Expel, reject|They CAST him OUT because of his behaviour.|1
  • cast round for|Try to find something|He CAST ROUND FOR any sign of his things.|_
  • cast up|Be left on the shore by the sea|The rubbish was CAST UP by the tide.|_
  • catch at|Take or grab hold of something|She CAUGHT AT my sleeve as I was leaving and said she needed to talk to me.|_
  • catch on|Become popular|Many critics were shocked when techno CAUGHT ON in the clubs.|1
  • catch out|Trick|The exam is designed to CATCH you OUT.|1
  • catch up|Get work, etc, up to date.|I was ill for a fortnight and now I’ve got to CATCH UP on the work I missed.|1
  • catch up in|Become involved, often against one’s will|The tourists were CAUGHT UP IN the violence of the revolution.|_
  • catch up on|Do something that should have been done earlier|I’m going home to CATCH UP ON my sleep.|_
  • catch up with|Do something that should have been done earlier|I’m going home to CATCH UP WITH my sleep.|1
  • cater for|To provide what is necessary|The college CATERS FOR students of all ages.|_
  • cater to|To provide what is needed, often seen negatively|The film CATERS TO the audience’s worst instincts.|_
  • cave in|Collapse|The roof CAVED IN because of the weight of the snow.|1
  • chalk out|To cut a line of cocaine|He went into the toilets to CHALK a line OUT.|1
  • chalk up|To achieve something good|The company has CHALKED UP its highest ever profits.|1
  • chalk up to|Explain the reason for a problem|They CHALKED the poor sales UP TO the lower numbers of tourists visiting this year.|_
  • chance upon|Find something by accident|I CHANCED UPON a very rare book in car boot sale and bought it for 65p.|1
  • change over|Change a system|The Irish CHANGED OVER to using kilometres in 2005.|1
  • charge up|Put electricity into a battery|I need to CHARGE my phone UP- the battery’s dead.|1
  • charge with|Accuse somebody of a crime|She was arrested in customs last night and has been CHARGED WITH smuggling.|_
  • chase down|Try hard to find or get something|The press CHASED us DOWN when the story broke.|_
  • chase off|Force a person to leave or go away|The dog CHASED he postal worker OFF.|_
  • chase up|Ensure that someone remembers to do something|The librarian is CHASING me UP about my overdue books.|_
  • chat away|Talk in a free and friendly manner|They were CHATTING AWAY within minutes of meeting.|_
  • chat up|Talk to someone you are sexually interested in to get them interested in you|He spent the whole night CHATTING her UP.|1
  • cheat on|Be sexually unfaithful|She CHEATED ON me with my friend.|1
  • cheat out of|Get money from someone under false pretences|I hate him- he CHEATED me OUT OF £100.|_
  • check by|Visit a place to check something|We CHECKED BY the office to see if the stuff was ready.|_
  • check in|Register on arriving at a hotel or at the airport|They CHECKED IN at the Ritz yesterday.|1
  • check into|Register on arriving at a hotel or at the airport|They CHECKED INTO the Ritz yesterday.|1
  • check off|Mark something on a list as done|She CHECKED OFF the candidates’ names as they arrived.|1
  • check out|Pay the bill when leaving a hotel|She CHECKED OUT and took a cab to the airport.|1
  • check out of|Settle up and pay before leaving a hotel|Guests have to CHECK OUT OF the hotel before midday.|_
  • check over|Check something very carefully|We CHECKED the contract OVER before signing it.|1
  • check up on|See if someone is OK or doing what they should be doing|I CHECKED UP ON them to see if they were revising for the test.|1
  • cheer on|Encourage|Their CHEERED their team ON throughout the match.|_
  • cheer up|Be less unhappy|Come on, CHEER UP; it isn’t all bad, you know.|1
  • chew off|Remove by biting|The dog CHEWED OFF the man’s face.|_
  • chew on|Thinks about something carefully before deciding|I’ll CHEW ON it for a day or two and let you know what I think.|_
  • chew out|Criticize someone angrily|They CHEWED him OUT for being late.|1
  • chew over|Think about an issue|He asked for a few days to CHEW the matter OVER before he made a final decision.|1
  • chew up|Cut into small pieces with your teeth|The puppy CHEWED UP the newspaper.|1
  • chicken out|Be too afraid to do something|I CHICKENED OUT of the bungee jumping when I saw how high it was.|1
  • chill out|Relax|I’m staying at home and CHILLING OUT this evening.|1
  • chime in|Contribute to a discussion|If it’s OK, I’d like to CHIME IN because I think it’s a good idea.|1
  • chip away at|Gradually reduce something to make it less powerful, effective, etc|They have been CHIPPING AWAY AT his reputation ever since he took office.|1
  • chip in|Contribute some money|Everybody CHIPPED IN to pay the bill.|1
  • choke off|Stop or restrict|These guerilla attacks are CHOKING OFF our food shipments.|1
  • choke out|Clog or overwhelm|Water hyacinth is CHOKING OUT the native vegetation in our rivers.|_
  • choke up|Become tearfully emotional|Jeff CHOKED UP during his retirement speech.|1
  • choose up|Form groups or teams|We CHOSE UP to play the game.|1
  • chop down|Fell or cut down a tree|They CHOPPED DOWN most of the forest and now it looks like a desert.|1
  • chop up|Cut into small pieces|I CHOPPED UP the vegetables for the soup.|1
  • chow down|Eat|Dinner’s ready- CHOW DOWN!.|_
  • chow down on|Eat something|We’re going to CHOW DOWN ON that barbecued pork.|_
  • chuck away|Dispose of something you no longer need or want|I CHUCKED AWAY all my old records years ago when CDs came out.|_
  • chuck in|Quit something|I CHUCKED my job IN to go travelling.|_
  • chuck out|Dispose of something you no longer need or want|I CHUCKED OUT some stuff I found in the fridge that had gone bad.|1
  • chuck up|Vomit, be sick|He got ridiculously drunk and CHUCKED UP in the back of the minicab on the way home.|_
  • churn out|Produce, usually quickly or in large amounts without much regard to quality|The government CHURNS OUT educational policies every few months.|1
  • clag up|Make something sticky|His arteries are CLAGGED UP because he eats so much saturated fat.|_
  • clam up|Be quiet, refuse to speak|Everybody CLAMMED UP when the Principal entered.|1
  • clamp down on|Restrict or try to stop something|The government are CLAMPING DOWN ON antisocial behaviour.|_
  • claw back|Get money back|The new tax will CLAW BACK what the government has given out in grants.|_
  • clean off|Remove dirt or something dirty|After dinner, I CLEANED OFF the table.|_
  • clean out|Tidy up thoroughly and throw away unwanted things.|I really must CLEAN the study OUT; there’s stuff all over the floor and piles of paper everywhere.|1
  • clean up|Tidy and clean|CLEAN this bedroom UP; it’s a disgrace.|1
  • clear away|Leave a place|We were told to CLEAR AWAY from the scene of the accident.|1
  • clear off|Leave somewhere quickly|As soon as the trouble started, we CLEARED OFF.|1
  • clear out|Tidy up thoroughly and throw away unwanted stuff.|I spent the whole weekend CLEARING OUT the attic as it was full of papers and other junk.|1
  • clear up|Cure or recover from an infection|I took the antihistamines and the rash CLEARED UP right away.|1
  • click through|Open an advertisement on the Internet|Only a tiny fraction of users ever bother CLICKING THROUGH the banner adverts.|_
  • climb down|Accept that you are wrong and change your position|The Prime Minister had to CLIMB DOWN over his tax proposals because there was so much opposition from the members of his own party.|1
  • cling on|Hold tight|He told me to CLING ON as the motorbike accelerated.|_
  • cling on to|Try to keep something|They CLUNG ON TO power despite the protests.|_
  • cling to|Try to maintain beliefs, hopes, etc.|They CLING TO their old way of thinking.|1
  • clock in|Record the time of arriving at work on a machine|If we don’t CLOCK IN, we have our pay docked.|1
  • clock off|Record the time you leave work|WE CLOCKED OFF at five o’clock and went for a drink.|1
  • clock on|Record the time of arriving at work on a machine|We have to CLOCK ON when we arrive.|1
  • clock out|Record the time you leave work|We CLOCKED OUT at six o’clock and went home.|1
  • clock up|Win, score or achieve results|They have CLOCKED UP five wins since the season started.|1
  • clog up|Block, slow movement right down|The traffic’s so bad the roads get CLOGGED UP at rush hour.|1
  • close down|Close a shop, branch or business permanently|The banks have CLOSED DOWN a lot of branches in villages over the last few years.|1
  • close in|Surround, envelop|The fog CLOSED IN and we couldn’t see two yards in front of us.|1
  • close in on|Get near someone|The police were CLOSING IN ON the gang.|_
  • close in upon|Get near someone|The police were CLOSING IN UPON the gang.|_
  • close off|Block a place to stop people entering|The police CLOSED the road OFF after the explosion.|1
  • close on|Get nearer|She is CLOSING ON the leader of the race.|_
  • close out|Bring something to an end|We CLOSED OUT the meeting early and went home.|1
  • close up|Completely close something|They CLOSE UP the building after everyone has left.|1
  • cloud over|Get very cloudy|The morning started bright and warm, but it CLOUDED OVER around midday and poured with rain.|1
  • clown about|Behave stupidly or waste time|The students were CLOWNING ABOUT all lesson.|_
  • clown around|Behave stupidly or waste time|I couldn’t concentrate because they were CLOWNING AROUND all afternoon.|1
  • coast along|Do something without making much effort or trying to improve|She’s been COASTING ALONG all year and hasn’t made a lot of progress.|_
  • cobble together|Make, assemble or produce something quickly, without much care|They COBBLED a few pages TOGETHER and submitted it.|1
  • cock up|Ruin or spoil something|It was so easy, but he managed to COCK everything UP.|1
  • colour (color) in|Fill an area with colour/color|She drew a figure and COLOURED IT IN.|_
  • colour (color) up|Blush|He COLOURED (COLORED) UP when he was caught stealing from the till.|_
  • come about|Happen, occur|The meeting CAME ABOUT because both sides were sick of fighting.|1
  • come across|Find by accident|I CAME ACROSS my old school reports when I was clearing out my desk.|1
  • come along|Accompany|May I COME ALONG on your trip tomorrow?|1
  • come apart|Break into pieces|It CAME APART when I tried to lift it off the floor and I had to glue it back together.|1
  • come around|Recover consciousness|It took several hours after the operation before he CAME AROUND.|1
  • come around to|Agree with or accept something you had previously disapproved of or disliked.|They have started COMING AROUND TO our way of thinking and are less hostile.|_
  • come back|Return|I left work and CAME BACK home early.|1
  • come before|Appear in court charged with a crime or offence|He CAME BEFORE the court on charges of speeding.|1
  • come by|Visit|I’ll COME BY after work and see if you need any help.|1
  • come down|Rain|Just look at the rain COMING DOWN! I’m not going out in that.|1
  • come down on|Criticise heavily|The management really CAME DOWN ON him for losing the contract.|_
  • come down to|Amount to, be the most important aspect|It all COMES DOWN TO a question of who tries hardest.|_
  • come down upon|Criticise, reprimand severely|They will COME DOWN UPON us if we are late.|_
  • come down with|Fall ill|She CAME DOWN WITH a virus.|_
  • come forth|Appear|The draft proposal CAME FORTH in April.|1
  • come forth with|Provide information|None of the witnesses CAME FORTH WITH an accurate description of the gang.|_
  • come from|Country or town where you were born|She COMES FROM Somalia.|_
  • come in|Arrive for flights|The plane CAME IN at two-thirty in the morning.|1
  • come in for|Receive (criticism or praise)|Jack\’s COME IN FOR quite a lot of criticism of late.|1
  • come into|Be important or relevant|Money doesn’t COME INTO it; I simply will not do it under any circumstances.|1
  • come into use|Start being used|The computerised system CAME INTO USE at the end of last year.|_
  • come off|When something breaks off|I picked it up and the handle CAME OFF in my hand.|1
  • come off it|I don’t believe what you’re saying; used as an imperative|COME OFF IT; tell me the truth for goodness’ sake.|_
  • come on|Encouragement|COME ON; don’t give up now when you’re so close to finishing.|1
  • come out|A secret is revealed|The details of the scandal CAME OUT in the press and she had to resign.|1
  • come out in|Have a rash or similar skin problem|She CAME OUT IN a nasty rash after touching the poisonous plant by mistake.|_
  • come out of|Recover consciousness|After three years, he CAME OUT OF the coma.|_
  • come out with|Make something available|They have just COME OUT WITH a new version.|_
  • come over|Feel strange|I CAME OVER all faint and weak because my sugar level was too low. (British)|1
  • come round|Become conscious, wake up from anaesthetic|She CAME ROUND and learned that the operation had been a complete success.|1
  • come through|Arrive (messages and information)|News is COMING THROUGH of a major accident on the M25, where freezing fog has been making driving conditions extremely dangerous.|1
  • come through with|Provide something needed|He didn’t COME THROUGH WITH the money and they went bust.|_
  • come to|Become conscious, wake up from anaesthetic|She CAME TO an hour after the operation.|1
  • come up|Appear|I’ll be late home tonight because something’s COME UP at work has to be ready for tomorrow morning.|1
  • come up against|Encounter problems or difficulties|They CAME UP AGAINST a lot of opposition to their plans for an out-of-town supermarket development.|_
  • come up with|Think of a solution, excuse, etc.|Nobody could COME UP WITH a satisfactory explanation for the accident.|_
  • come upon|Find by chance|I CAME UPON the book in a little second-hand bookshop in Dorset.|1
  • cone off|Close part or all of a road|The police CONED OFF the lane after the accident.|_
  • conjure up|Create a picture or memory in someone’s mind|It CONJURES UP memories of my school days.|1
  • conk out|Fall fast asleep|I was exhausted and CONKED OUT on the sofa.|1
  • contract in|Become involved or committed to something|Since it started, many companies have CONTRACTED IN to lend their support.|1
  • contract out|Give a contract for a service outside the company you work for|They have CONTRACTED OUT their catering services to save money.|1
  • contract out of|Formally leave and agreement|I CONTRACTED OUT OF the deal years ago.|_
  • cool down|Get cooler|I left the tea for a minute until it had COOLED DOWN enough to drink.|1
  • cool off|Become calmer|We’ll talk to Fred once he COOLS OFF and can talk rationally.|1
  • coop up|Confine in a small area|They COOPED the dog UP in a tiny room.|1
  • cop it|Get into trouble|They really COPPED IT when they got caught shoplifting.|_
  • cop off|Leave work or school early|We COPPED OFF early on Friday because there was nothing to do.|_
  • cop out|Choose an easy alternative|She was going to take a Master’s degree but COPPED OUT and chose the Diploma course instead.|1
  • cost up|Calculate how expensive some work is going to be|The decorators are going to COST UP the work tomorrow.|_
  • cotton on|To work out the truth|It took me ages to COTTON ON to what they were planning.|1
  • cough up|Lose possession of a ball, etc. in a contact sport|He was checked so hard he COUGHED UP the puck in front of his own goal.|1
  • could do with|Need or want something|I COULD really DO WITH a cup of tea.|_
  • count against|Affect negatively, make less likely to succeed|Not having a university degree will COUNT AGAINST her.|_
  • count among|Include someone or something in a group, category, etc|I COUNT her AMONG my closest friends.|_
  • count down|Wait impatiently or excitedly for something to happen|I’m COUNTING DOWN the days till they leave.|1
  • count for|Be recognised as important, worthwhile or valuable|Experience COUNTS FOR a lot in decision making.|_
  • count in|Include or involve|If you’re going on that skiing holiday, you can COUNT me IN; I’d love to go.|_
  • count off|Say numbers aloud in a sequence|They COUNTED the students OFF as they arrived.|1
  • count on|Depend, rely|You can COUNT ON them; if they have promised to do something, they’ll do it.|1
  • count out|Exclude|I don’t want to go- you can COUNT me OUT.|1
  • count towards|Be a part needed to complete something|The coursework COUNTS TOWARDS the final grade.|_
  • count up|Add|COUNT UP the number of tickets sold, please.|_
  • count upon|Expect something to happen and base plans on it|I was COUNTING UPON their support and lost because they didn’t vote my way.|_
  • cover for|Provide an excuse or alibi|She asked me to COVER FOR her if anyone asked where she’d gone.|1
  • cover up|Conceal, try to stop people finding out|They tried to COVER UP the incident but it got into the newspapers.|1
  • cozy up|Make yourself comfortable|It was cold and I COZIED UP by the fire.|1
  • cozy up to|Make yourself popular with someone|He’s been COZYING UP TO our boss because he wants a pay rise.|_
  • crack down on|Use more authority than usual|The police always CRACK DOWN ON drink-driving offences over the Christmas period.|_
  • crack on|Continue doing something with energy|We had to CRACK ON to get everything finished on time.|_
  • crack up|Have a nervous breakdown|He CRACKED UP after his son died and had to take a couple of months off work.|1
  • crank out|Produce a lot of something fast|My boss keeps CRANKING OUT stupid memos.|1
  • crank up|Inject non-medical drugs|He’s been CRANKING UP heroin for years.|1
  • crash out|Sleep at someone’s house because you are too tired, drunk, etc. to leave|Dave CRASHED OUT at a friend’s flat after the end-of-term party.|_
  • cream off|Separate the best or most talented people so that they can receive special or different treatment|The private schools CREAM OFF many of the best pupils.|1
  • creep in|Start to be noticeable|He tried to stay calm, but you could hear the anger CREEPING IN.|1
  • creep into|Become noticeable in something|An angry tone CREPT INTO her voice.|_
  • creep out|make someone feel worried or uneasy|He CREEPS me OUT when he gets drunk.|_
  • creep out on|To do the same activity for a very long time|He’s been CREEPING OUT ON that computer game all day.|_
  • creep over|Start to have a negative feeling|Fear CREPT OVER me as I walked through the graveyard.|_
  • creep up on|Approach without someone realising|They CREPT UP ON their rivals and overtook them.|_
  • crop up|Appear unexpectedly|I’m going to be late tonight as something has just CROPPED UP at work.|1
  • cross off|Delete, remove from a list|She CROSSED him OFF her Christmas card list after they argued.|1
  • cross out|Put as line through some writing to show it is wrong|She CROSSED OUT her mistakes and wrote the correct answers above them.|1
  • cross up|Confuse, deceive|The treasure map was deliberately drawn to CROSS us UP.|_
  • cruise through|Pass or succeed easily|He CRUISED THROUGH the exam.|_
  • crumb down|Clear a table in a restaurant|The waiter CRUMBED DOWN before the coffee was served.|_
  • cry off|To cancel an arrangement|I’ve got to work tonight; can I CRY OFF going out for dinner?|_
  • cry out|Shout because you are in pain|He CRIED OUT when he dropped the box on his toes.|1
  • cut across|Go across a place rather than around it to make the journey quicker|It’ll be quicker if we CUT ACROSS the park.|1
  • cut back|Reduce|The firm CUT BACK production because sales were sluggish.|1
  • cut back on|Reduce expenditure|The government has decided to CUT BACK ON spending on the armed forces.|_
  • cut down|Consume less|I’m trying to CUT DOWN the amount of coffee I drink during the day.|1
  • cut down on|Reduce|Doctors advised her to CUT DOWN ON the amount of saturated fats in her diet.|_
  • cut in|Start functioning|The fans CUT IN when the engine starts getting too hot.|1
  • cut it out|Stop your unfair or unreasonable behaviour|Will you two idiots CUT IT OUT and keep quiet.|_
  • cut off|Disconnect|The telephone’s been CUT OFF because we didn’t pay the bill.|1
  • cut out|Exclude|I’m CUTTING OUT salt from my diet.|1
  • cut out on|Let down, snub|Although he’d promised to help, the star CUT OUT ON the charity when offered more money.|_
  • cut through|Deal quickly with a complex issue that is causing trouble|She CUT THROUGH the bureaucracy that was holding us up and got the deal done.|1
  • cut up|Cut into smaller pieces|After cutting the tree down, the logger CUT it UP into logs.|1
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