| ask around | ask many people the same question | I asked around but nobody has seen my wallet. |
| add up to something | equal | Your purchases add up to $205.32. |
| back something up | reverse | You'll have to back up your car so that I can get out. |
| back someone up | support | My wife backed me up over my decision to quit my job. |
| blow up | explode | The racing car blew up after it crashed into the fence. |
| blow something up | add air | We have to blow 50 balloons up for the party. |
| break down | stop functioning (vehicle, machine) | Our car broke down at the side of the highway in the snowstorm. |
| break down | get upset | The woman broke down when the police told her that her son had died. |
| break something down | divide into smaller parts | Our teacher broke the final project down into three separate parts. |
| break in | force entry to a building | Somebody broke in last night and stole our stereo. |
| break into something | enter forcibly | The firemen had to break into the room to rescue the children. |
| break something in | wear something a few times so that it doesn't look/feel new | I need to break these shoes in before we run next week. |
| break in | interrupt | The TV station broke in to report the news of the president's death. |
| break up | end a relationship | My boyfriend and I broke up before I moved to America. |
| break up | start laughing (informal) | The kids just broke up as soon as the clown started talking. |
| break out | escape | The prisoners broke out of jail when the guards weren't looking. |
| break out in something | develop a skin condition | I broke out in a rash after our camping trip. |
| bring someone down | make unhappy | This sad music is bringing me down. |
| bring someone up | raise a child | My grandparents brought me up after my parents died. |
| bring something up | start talking about a subject | My mother walks out of the room when my father brings up sports. |
| bring something up | vomit | He drank so much that he brought his dinner up in the toilet. |
| call around | phone many different places/people | We called around but we weren't able to find the car part we needed. |
| call someone back | return a phone call | I called the company back but the offices were closed for the weekend. |
| call something off | cancel | Jason called the wedding off because he wasn't in love with his fiancé. |
| call on someone | ask for an answer or opinion | The professor called on me for question 1. |
| call on someone | visit someone | We called on you last night but you weren't home. |
| call someone up | phone | Give me your phone number and I will call you up when we are in town. |
| calm down | relax after being angry | You are still mad. You need to calm down before you drive the car. |
| not care for someone/something | not like (formal) | I don't care for his behaviour. |
| catch up | get to the same point as someone else | You'll have to run faster than that if you want to catch up with Marty. |
| check in | arrive and register at a hotel or airport | We will get the hotel keys when we check in. |
| check out | leave a hotel | You have to check out of the hotel before 11:00 AM. |
| check someone/something out | look at carefully, investigate | The company checks out all new employees. |
| check out someone/something | look at (informal) | Check out the crazy hair on that guy! |
| cheer up | become happier | She cheered up when she heard the good news. |
| cheer someone up | make happier | I brought you some flowers to cheer you up. |
| chip in | help | If everyone chips in we can get the kitchen painted by noon. |
| clean something up | tidy, clean | Please clean up your bedroom before you go outside. |
| come across something | find unexpectedly | I came across these old photos when I was tidying the closet. |
| come apart | separate | The top and bottom come apart if you pull hard enough. |
| come down with something | become sick | My nephew came down with chicken pox this weekend. |
| come forward | volunteer for a task or to give evidence | The woman came forward with her husband's finger prints. |
| come from somewhere | originate in | The art of origami comes from Asia. |
| count on someone/something | rely on | I am counting on you to make dinner while I am out. |
| cross something out | draw a line through | Please cross out your old address and write your new one. |
| cut back on something | consume less | My doctor wants me to cut back on sweets and fatty foods. |
| cut something down | make something fall to the ground | We had to cut the old tree in our yard down after the storm. |
| cut in | interrupt | Your father cut in while I was dancing with your uncle. |
| cut in | pull in too closely in front of another vehicle | The bus driver got angry when that car cut in. |
