phrasal verbs for everyday conversation

Phrasal Verbs for Everyday Conversation

Phrasal verbs are an essential part of English, especially in casual and everyday conversations. They consist of a verb and one or more particles (prepositions or adverbs), and their meanings often differ from the original verb. Mastering phrasal verbs will make your English sound more natural and fluent.

Common Phrasal Verbs with Meanings and Examples

1. Turn on

Meaning: To activate or start a device (e.g., lights, TV, computer).

• Can you turn on the lights? It’s too dark in here.
• She turned on the TV to watch her favorite show.
• Don’t forget to turn on the heater before you leave.

2. Turn off

Meaning: To deactivate or stop a device.

• Please turn off your phone during the meeting.
• He always turns off the air conditioner before sleeping.
• Remember to turn off the stove after cooking.

3. Pick up

Meaning: To lift something or collect someone.

• Could you pick up the pen I dropped?
• I’ll pick you up at 8 PM for the party.
• She picked up some groceries on her way home.

4. Put on

Meaning: To wear clothes or apply something (e.g., makeup).

• He put on his jacket before going outside.
• She put on some perfume before the date.
• Don’t forget to put on sunscreen at the beach.

5. Take off

Meaning: To remove clothing or leave the ground (for planes).

• You should take off your shoes before entering.
• The plane took off at exactly 3 PM.
• He took off his hat when he entered the building.

6. Look up

Meaning: To search for information (usually in a dictionary or online).

• I need to look up the meaning of this word.
• She looked up the restaurant’s reviews before going.
• Can you look up the train schedule for me?

7. Run out of

Meaning: To have no more of something left.

• We ran out of milk, so I need to buy more.
• He ran out of time and couldn’t finish the exam.
• They ran out of gas in the middle of the trip.

8. Give up

Meaning: To stop trying or quit.

• Don’t give up! You can do it!
• He gave up smoking last year.
• She gave up her job to travel the world.

9. Find out

Meaning: To discover or learn something.

• I just found out that she’s moving abroad.
• Did you find out what time the movie starts?
• They found out the truth after investigating.

10. Go on

Meaning: To continue or happen.

• Please go on with your story; it’s interesting!
• What’s going on here? Why is everyone shouting?
• The concert went on despite the rain.

Exercises: Practice Using Phrasal Verbs

Fill in the blanks with the correct phrasal verb from the list: (turn on, turn off, pick up, put on, take off, look up, run out of, give up, find out, go on)

1. Can you ____ the radio? I want to listen to the news.
2. She ____ her coat because it was too hot inside.
3. We ____ sugar, so I need to buy some more.
4. He decided to ____ his job and start his own business.
5. I need to ____ the address of the new restaurant.
6. Please ____ the lights when you leave the room.
7. What’s ____ in the neighborhood? There are so many police cars.
8. She ____ her glasses before reading the book.
9. I’ll ____ you at the station at 6 PM.
10. They ____ that the meeting was canceled.

Answer Key

Question	Answer
1	turn on
2	took off
3	ran out of
4	give up
5	look up
6	turn off
7	going on
8	put on
9	pick up
10	found out