Act on

• Meaning: Act decisively on the basis of information received or deduced.
• Example: The detective decided to act on the anonymous tip

Act on

• Meaning: Take action against something.
• Example: World leaders have repeatedly stated that we must act on climate change.

Act on

• Meaning: Affect something.
• Example: Different drugs act on different parts of our body in many different ways.

Act out

Perform a scene from a play, a charade or an exercise

Perform a fantasy in reality

Express one’s feelings through disruptive actions

Express ideas or desires through actions rather than words

• Meaning: Express one’s feelings through disruptive actions.
• Example: I know you’re angry, but you can’t act out and break dishes like that.

Meaning: Perform a scene from a play, a charade or an exercise.

Example: Despite already being aware, he will be acting out the pretence of a surprise

• Meaning: Express ideas or desires through actions rather than words.
• Example: When her jaw was wired shut, she had acted out what she needed.

Act up

Misbehave; cause trouble

• Meaning: Misbehave; cause trouble
• Example: Children may act up in class in an effort to get attention

Act up to

Equal in action; fulfill in practice

• Meaning: Equal in action; fulfill in practice.
• Example: He has acted up to his engagement or his advantages.

Act upon

Take action on the basis of information received or deduced

• Meaning: Take action on the basis of information received or deduced.
• Example: The policeman decided to act upon the informant’s phone call.

ANSWER

Answer back

Reply impertinently; to talk back

Reply to a question at a later time

• Meaning: Reply impertinently; to talk back
• Example: I’ll thank you not to answer back like that! Where are your manners?

Answer back

• Meaning: Reply to a question at a later time
• Example: Please answer me back before the end of the week.

Answer for

Be held responsible for; to take the blame for something

Guarantee

Vouch for (someone); to attest to the character of (someone)

Answer for

• Meaning: Be held responsible for; to take the blame for something
• Example: The mayor will be answering for his crimes for many years.

• Meaning: Vouch for (someone); to attest to the character of (someone)
• Example: She’s known me for years, and she’s always answered for me!

Answer to

Be accountable or responsible to

Justify oneself to (someone)

Respond to (a name); to treat as one’s own name

• Meaning: Respond to (a name); to treat as one’s own name
• Example: She’s answered to Katie her entire life.

Answer to

• Meaning: Be accountable or responsible to
• Example: I’m above you in the hierarchy, Jim, so you should be answering to me.

Answer to

• Meaning: Justify oneself to (someone)
• Example: You’re going to have to answer to all of these charges to my satisfaction.

ASK

Ask after

Enquire about someone’s health, how life is going.

Ask around (round)

Enquire of different people about something

Ask for

Request

Increase the likelihood of something by persisting in some action; to invite

Ask in

Invite someone to enter one’s house

Ask out

Invite somebody, especially on a date

Ask round

Invite someone to your house

Ask over

Invite them to come from their house to your house

BACK

Back down

Take a less aggressive position in a conflict than one previously has or has planned to

Back into

Rely upon another team’s loss in order to advance to the post-season

Back off

Move backwards away from something

Become less aggressive, particularly when one had appeared committed to act

Lower the setting of

Back onto

Reverse a vehicle onto something

Overlook something from the rear

Back out

Reverse a vehicle from a confined space

Withdraw from something one has agreed to do

Undo a change

Back up Move backwards, especially for a vehicle to do so

Move a vehicle backward

Undo one’s actions

Reconsider one’s thoughts

Copy (data) as a security measure

Provide support or the promise of support

Halt the flow or movement of something

Back off

• Meaning: Become less aggressive, particularly when one had appeared committed to act
• Example: You need to back off, or the situation could turn ugly.

Back off

• Meaning: Lower the setting of
• Example: Could you back off the volume a bit? It’s really loud.

Back onto Meaning & Examples

Back onto

• Meaning: Reverse a vehicle onto something
• Example: The car backed onto my toe.

Back onto

• Meaning: Overlook something from the rear
• Example: My house backs onto the canal.

Back out Meaning & Examples

Back out

• Meaning: Reverse a vehicle from a confined space
• Example: He backed out of the garage.

Back out

• Meaning: Withdraw from something one has agreed to do
• Example: She backed out of organizing the fund-raising.

Back out

• Meaning: Undo a change
• Example: I had to back out the changes made to the computer when it became apparent that they had stopped it working properly.

Back up Meaning & Examples

Back up

• Meaning: Move backwards, especially for a vehicle to do so
• Example: That beeping sound indicates that the truck is backing up.

Back up

• Meaning: Move a vehicle backward
• Example: Back up the car a little, you’re blocking the driveway.

Back up

• Meaning: Undo one’s actions
• Example: I couldn’t see how to finish the project, so I backed up and tried it another way.

Back up

• Meaning: Reconsider one’s thoughts
• Example: This isn’t working. Let’s back up and think about it.

Back up

• Meaning: Copy (data) as a security measure
• Example: Back up your documents folder before applying the update.

Back up

• Meaning: Provide support or the promise of support
• Example: You should be careful. This guy is backed up by the local gang.

Back up

• Meaning: Halt the flow or movement of something
• Example: When I flushed the toilet, the plumbing backed up and burst.

Be above

Be too good, classy or mature to do something; to disdain

Be above

Outrank

Be along

Arrive

Be around

Be alive, existent, or present

Be near; to socialize with

Be cut out for

Be suitable, have the necessary qualities

Be down

Be depressed

Be down to

Be reduced or less

Be down on

Have negative feelings toward someone

Be down with

Be ill

Be fed up

Be bored, upset or sick of something

Be in for

Be able to expect or anticipate, generally said of something unpleasant

Be incarcerated for

Be in on

Be a party to a secret shared by a small group of people

Be on about

Talk about; mean, intend

Be on to

Figure out; to realize the truth

Be out for

Seek or pursue, especially to determinedly pursue something to one’s own benefit

Be there for

Be available to provide comfort and support for someone,

especially in a period of difficulty

Be snowed under

Have too much work

Be taken aback

Be shocked or surprised

Be taken with

Like something or someone very much

Be up for

To want to do something

Be up to

Do or be involved in doing

Be with

Have sex with

Date or be boyfriend/girlfriend with

Agree with someone

Understand someone’s point or intention

Be above Meaning & Examples

Be above

• Meaning: Be too good, classy or mature to do something; to disdain
• Example: I thought you said you were above these kinds of antics.

Be above

• Meaning: Outrank
• Example: General Smith is above Private Johnson.

Be along, Be around Meaning & Examples

Be along

• Meaning: Arrive
• Example: I expect John will be along soon.

Be around

• Meaning: Be alive, existent, or present
• Example: I’ll be around for another hour or so.

Be around

• Meaning: Be near; to socialize with
• Example: You’re fun to be around.

Be cut out for, Be down, Be down to, Be down on, Be down with Meaning & Examples

Be cut out for

• Meaning: Be suitable, have the necessary qualities
• Example: He‘s not cut out for teaching.

Be down

• Meaning: Be depressed
• Example: I got some bad news this morning, so I‘m a bit down at the moment.

Be down to

• Meaning: Be reduced or less
• Example: Because of the big sale, the price of these shirts is now down to four dollars.

Be down on

• Meaning: Have negative feelings toward someone
• Example: I don’t know why you‘re so down on Tom.

Be down with

• Meaning: Be ill
• Example: I think you are down with the flu.

Be fed up, Be in for, Be in on Meaning & Examples

Be fed up

• Meaning: Be bored, upset or sick of something
• Example: I‘m fed up with my job.

Be in for

• Meaning: Be able to expect or anticipate, generally said of something unpleasant
• Example: The weather forecast says we are in for three feet of snow over the next week.

Be in for

• Meaning: Be incarcerated for
• Example: My cousin is in for armed robbery.

Be in on

• Meaning: Be a party to a secret shared by a small group of people
• Example: He smiled a little to himself, as he was in on the plan.

Be on about, Be on to, Be out for, Be there for Meaning & Examples

Be on about

• Meaning: Talk about; mean, intend
• Example: I had no idea what on earth you were on about when you started using those scientific terms. I was totally confused.

Be on to

• Meaning: Figure out; to realize the truth
• Example: I was planning it as a surprise, but I think he is on to me.

Be out for

• Meaning: Seek or pursue, especially to determinedly pursue something to one’s own benefit
• Example: He‘s out for all he can get.

Be there for

• Meaning: Be available to provide comfort and support for someone, especially in a period of difficulty
• Example: She knows that I’ll always be there for her.

Be snowed under, Be taken aback, Be taken with Meaning & Examples

Be snowed under

• Meaning: Have too much work
• Example: I’d love to go out to dinner tonight, but I‘m totally snowed under at the office right now.

Be taken aback

• Meaning: Be shocked or surprised
• Example: I was taken aback when we weren’t receiving our bonuses this year.

Be taken with

• Meaning: Like something or someone very much
• Example: I could tell he was quite taken with my daughter.

Be up for, Be up to Meaning & Examples

Be up for

• Meaning: To want to do something
• Example: We’re going clubbing tonight if you‘re up for it.

Be up to

• Meaning: Do or be involved in doing
• Example: I saw you hiding in the bushes yesterday. What were you up to?

Be with Meaning & Examples

Be with

• Meaning: Have sex with
• Example: We dated for almost a year, but I’ve never been with him.

Be with

• Meaning: Date or be boyfriend/girlfriend with
• Example: I’ve been with her for almost a year now.

Be with

• Meaning: Agree with someone
• Example: I’m sorry; I’m not with you on this point.

Be with

• Meaning: Understand someone’s point or intention
• Example: I came in here disagreeing, but I’ve changed my mind, and now I’m with you on this.

BEAT

Beat down: Strike with great force

Beat down: Haggle with someone to sell at a lower price

Beat off: Waste time

Beat out: Sound a rhythm on a percussion instrument such as a drum

Beat out: Extinguish

Beat out: Defeat by a narrow margin

Beat up: Give a severe beating to, to assault violently hitting the victim repeatedly

Beat up: Feel badly guilty and accuse oneself over something

Beat down Meaning and Examples

Beat down

• Meaning: Strike with great force
• Example: It was a ghastly morning, with the rain beating down in sheets.

Beat down

• Meaning: Haggle with someone to sell at a lower price
• Example: I managed to beat him down to half his original asking price.

Beat off, Beat out Meaning and Examples

Beat off

• Meaning: Waste time
• Example: I beat off at work all day; I didn’t get anything done.

Beat out

• Meaning: Sound a rhythm on a percussion instrument such as a drum
• Example: The drummer beat out a steady slow march.

Beat out

• Meaning: Extinguish
• Example: He managed to beat the flames out with a blanket.

Beat out

• Meaning: Defeat by a narrow margin
• Example: She beat out three other contenders to claim the prize.

Beat up Meaning and Examples

Beat up

• Meaning: Give a severe beating to, to assault violently hitting the victim repeatedly
• Example: I got beaten up by thugs on my way home.

Beat up

• Meaning: Feel badly guilty and accuse oneself over something
• Example: Don’t beat yourself up over such a minor mistake.

BLOW

Blow away: Cause to go away by blowing, or by wind

Disperse or to depart on currents of air

Kill (someone) by shooting them

Flabbergast; to impress greatly

Blow down

Knock over with an air current, most often wind

Blow off

Let steam escape through a passage provided for the purpose

Shirk or disregard

Forcibly disconnect something by use of a firearm or explosive device

Blow out

Extinguish something, especially a flame

Deflate quickly on being punctured

Be driven out by the expansive force of a gas or vapour

Blow over

Blow on something causing it to topple

Be knocked down by wind

Pass naturally; to go away; to settle or calm down

Blow past

Easily overcome or go around a safeguard or limit

Blow up

Explode or be destroyed by explosion

Cause (something or someone) to explode

Inflate or fill with air

Enlarge or zoom in

Suddenly get very angry

Blow away

• Meaning: Cause to go away by blowing, or by wind
• Example: He blew away the dust which had collected on the book.

Blow away

• Meaning: Disperse or to depart on currents of air
• Example: I didn’t have to rake. The leaves just blew away.

Blow away

• Meaning: Kill (someone) by shooting them
• Example: The kid just blew the clerk away.

Blow away

• Meaning: Flabbergast; to impress greatly
• Example: The critics were blown away by their latest album.

Blow down, Blow off Meaning and Examples

Blow down

• Meaning: Knock over with an air current, most often wind
• Example: I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your house down.

Blow off

• Meaning: Let steam escape through a passage provided for the purpose
• Example: The engine or steamer is blowing off.

Blow off

• Meaning: Shirk or disregard
• Example: I decided to blow off the meeting and leave early.

Blow off

• Meaning: Forcibly disconnect something by use of a firearm or explosive device
• Example: Her leg was blown off by a landmine.

Blow out Meaning and Examples

Blow out

• Meaning: Extinguish something, especially a flame
• Example: He blew out the match.

Blow out

• Meaning: Deflate quickly on being punctured
• Example: The tire blew out on a corner.

Blow out

• Meaning: Be driven out by the expansive force of a gas or vapour
• Example: A steam cock or valve sometimes blows out.

Blow over Meaning and Examples

Blow over

• Meaning: Blow on something causing it to topple
• Example: The wind blew over the pole.

Blow over

• Meaning: Be knocked down by wind
• Example: The tree blew over in the storm.

Blow over

• Meaning: Pass naturally; to go away; to settle or calm down
• Example: They huddled, waiting for the storm to blow over.

Blow past, Blow up Meaning and Examples

Blow past

• Meaning: Easily overcome or go around a safeguard or limit
• Example: I’ve just blown past my calorie limit for the day.

Blow up

• Meaning: Explode or be destroyed by explosion
• Example: Why do cars in movies always blow up when they fall off a cliff?

Blow up

• Meaning: Cause (something or someone) to explode
• Example: We had to blow up the bridge before the enemy army arrived.

Blow up

• Meaning: Inflate or fill with air
• Example: Let’s blow up the balloons for the party.

Blow up

• Meaning: Enlarge or zoom in
• Example: Blow up the picture to get a better look at their faces.

Blow up

• Meaning: Suddenly get very angry
• Example: Dad blew up at me when I told him I was pregnant.

BREAK

Break away

Leave suddenly

Become separated, literally or figuratively

Break down

Fail, to cease to function

Render or to become unstable due to stress, to collapse physically or mentally

Render or to become weak and ineffective

Decay, to decompose

Divide into parts to give more details, to provide a more indepth analysis of

Digest

Break even

Neither gain nor lose money

Stay the same; to neither advance nor regress

Break in

Enter a place by force or illicit means

Cause to function more naturally through use or wear

Break off

End a relationship.

To stop (temporarily)

To become separate (from something)

Break into

Enter illegally or by force, especially in order to commit a crime

Open or begin to use

Successfully enter a profession or business

Begin suddenly

Break out

Escape, especially forcefully or defiantly

Begin suddenly; to emerge in a certain condition

Break through

To break a way through (sth solid)

To make new and important discoveries

Break up

Break or separate into pieces; to disintegrate or come apart

End a relationship

Dissolve; to part

Break or separate into pieces

Stop a fight; to separate people who are fighting

Break away, Break down Meaning and Examples

Break away

• Meaning: Leave suddenly
• Example: She was brought up in a very religious household, but broke away from the church in her teens.

Break away

• Meaning: Become separated, literally or figuratively
• Example: A chunk of rock broke away from the cliff edge.

Break down

• Meaning: Fail, to cease to function
• Example: I am afraid my computer will break down if I try to run it at too high a speed.

Break down

• Meaning: Render or to become unstable due to stress, to collapse physically or mentally
• Example: She is back to work now, after she broke down the other day.

Break down

• Meaning: Render or to become weak and ineffective
• Example: His authority and influence over his coordinates broke down gradually.

Break down

• Meaning: Decay, to decompose
• Example: Leaves and grass will break down into compost faster if you keep them moist.

Break down

• Meaning: Divide into parts to give more details, to provide a more indepth analysis of
• Example: If you don’t understand, ask him to break down the numbers for you.

Break down

• Meaning: Digest
• Example: His stomach took a while to break down his food.

Break even, Break in Meaning and Examples

Break even

• Meaning: Neither gain nor lose money
• Example: After an entire night playing poker, he nearly broke even.

Break even

• Meaning: Stay the same; to neither advance nor regress
• Example: It’s a lot of work just to break even and keep the weeds down.

Break in

• Meaning: Enter a place by force or illicit means
• Example: Someone broke in and stole his radio.

Break in

• Meaning: Cause to function more naturally through use or wear
• Example: These shoes will be more comfortable after I have broken them in.

Break off, Break into Meaning and Examples

Break off

• Meaning: End a relationship.
• Example: I’ve decided to break it off with her.

Break off

• Meaning: To stop (temporarily)
• Example: Linda broke off, realizing that she was wrong.

Break off

• Meaning: To become separate (from something)
• Example: Part of the chimney broke off and fell to the ground.

Break into

• Meaning: Enter illegally or by force, especially in order to commit a crime
• Example: Somebody broke into his car and stole his tools and CDs.

Break into

• Meaning: Open or begin to use
• Example: I finally broke into the second package of cookies.

Break into

• Meaning: Successfully enter a profession or business
• Example: He hopes to break into show business.

Break into

• Meaning: Begin suddenly
• Example: The horse broke into a gallop as they neared the barn.

Break out, Break through Meaning and Examples

Break out

• Meaning: Escape, especially forcefully or defiantly
• Example: They broke out of prison in the middle of the night.

Break out

• Meaning: Begin suddenly; to emerge in a certain condition
• Example: He broke out in sweat.

Break through

• Meaning: To break a way through (sth solid)
• Example: Demonstrators broke through the police cordon.

Break through

• Meaning: To make new and important discoveries
• Example: Scientists think they are beginning to break through in the fight against cancer.

Break up Meaning and Examples

Break up

• Meaning: Break or separate into pieces; to disintegrate or come apart
• Example: It broke up when it hit the ground.

Break up

• Meaning: End a relationship
• Example: She broke up with her boyfriend last week.

Break up

• Meaning: Dissolve; to part
• Example: The meeting finally broke up after a three-hour discussion.

Break up

• Meaning: Break or separate into pieces
• Example: Break up the cheese and put it in the salad.

Break up

• Meaning: Stop a fight; to separate people who are fighting
• Example: The police came in to break up the disturbance.

BRING

Bring about

Cause to take place

Accomplish, achieve

Bring along

Bring someone or something to certain place.

Bring around

Persuade or convince someone.

Bring something with you when you visit.

Get someone talking about something.

Bring back

Fetch something

Cause someone to remember something from the past

Reenact an old rule or law

Bring down:

Make a legitimate rulership lose their position of power

Reduce

Make something fall to the ground

Make someone feel bad emotionally

Bring forth:

Produce, bear as fruit

Give birth

Create, generate, bring into existence

Display, produce, bring out for display

Bring forward

Make something happen earlier than originally planned

Bring in

Move something indoors

Bring off

Succeed in doing something considered to be very difficult

Bring out

Elicit, evoke, or emphasize a particular quality

Place (something new for public sale) on the market; roll out

Make a shy person more confident

Cause a visible symptom such as spots or a rash

Bring round

Bring something when coming

Resuscitate; to cause to regain consciousness

Change someone’s opinion or point of view

Bring to

Restore consciousness

Make something equal to a different amount

Bring up

Mention

Raise

Uncover, to bring from obscurity

Turn on power or start, as of a machine

Vomit

Bring about, Bring along Meaning and Examples

Bring about

• Meaning: Cause to take place
• Example: The collapse of the gold standard brought about much of the economic turmoil of that era.

Bring about

• Meaning: Accomplish, achieve
• Example: I hope to bring about a successful conclusion.

Bring along

• Meaning: Bring someone or something to certain place.
• Example: I brought my uncle along to the party.

Bring around Meaning and Examples

Bring around

• Meaning: Persuade or convince someone.
• Example: Sam was sure he could bring them around to the deal.

Bring around

• Meaning: Bring something with you when you visit.
• Example: He promised to bring the letter around in the morning.

Bring around

• Meaning: Get someone talking about something.
• Example: Eventually I brought the conversation around to the subject of money.

Bring back Meaning and Examples

Bring back

• Meaning: Fetch something
• Example: I brought back the groceries.

Bring back

• Meaning: Cause someone to remember something from the past
• Example: The smell of the magnolia brought back sweet memories of my childhood.

Bring back

• Meaning: Reenact an old rule or law
• Example: In the UK it is customary to hold a vote every few years on whether to bring back the death penalty.

Bring down Meaning and Examples

Bring down

• Meaning: Make a legitimate rulership lose their position of power
• Example: The rebel forces are trying to bring down the president and his government.

Bring down

• Meaning: Reduce
• Example: The latest budget reforms are intended to bring down the level of inflation.

Bring down

• Meaning: Make something fall to the ground
• Example: He brought down a pheasant with his first shot of the day.

Bring down

• Meaning: Make someone feel bad emotionally
• Example: The news of his death brought her down.

Bring forth Meaning and Examples

Bring forth

• Meaning: Produce, bear as fruit
• Example: Their orchard brings forth magnificent fruit.

Bring forth

• Meaning: Give birth
• Example: Queen Anne Boleyn brought forth daughters but no male heir.

Bring forth

• Meaning: Create, generate, bring into existence
• Example: He has the ability to bring forth new ideas when they are needed.

Bring forth

• Meaning: Display, produce, bring out for display
• Example: Against all expectations, the accused managed to bring forth convincing evidence of his innocence.

Bring forward, Bring in , Bring off Meaning and Examples

Bring forward

• Meaning: Make something happen earlier than originally planned
• Example: The meeting has been brought forward by one day.

Bring in

• Meaning: Move something indoors
• Example: Could you bring in the groceries?

Bring off

• Meaning: Succeed in doing something considered to be very difficult
• Example: I don’t know how, but he managed to bring off the Acme Foods deal.

Bring out Meaning and Examples

Bring out

• Meaning: Elicit, evoke, or emphasize a particular quality
• Example: She brings out the best in him.

Bring out

• Meaning: Place (something new for public sale) on the market; roll out
• Example: Acme sweets have just brought out a tasty new chocolate bar.

Bring out

• Meaning: Make a shy person more confident
• Example: His new job has noticeably brought him out.

Bring out

• Meaning: Cause a visible symptom such as spots or a rash
• Example: Eating strawberries always brings me out in a rash.

Bring round Meaning and Examples

Bring round

• Meaning: Bring something when coming
• Example: Can you bring round some beer when you come tonight?

Bring round

• Meaning: Resuscitate; to cause to regain consciousness
• Example: We thought he was going to die, but the doctors managed to bring him round.

Bring round

• Meaning: Change someone’s opinion or point of view
• Example: She was opposed to the new housing development, but we eventually brought her round.

Bring to Meaning and Examples

Bring to

• Meaning: Restore consciousness
• Example: The smelling salts will bring him to.

Bring to

• Meaning: Make something equal to a different amount
• Example: This brings your total to twenty dollars.

Bring up Meaning and Examples

Bring up

• Meaning: Mention
• Example: Don’t bring up politics if you want to have a quiet conversation with that guy.

Bring up

• Meaning: Raise
• Example: She did well enough bringing up two sons and a daughter on her own.

Bring up

• Meaning: Uncover, to bring from obscurity
• Example: A short Internet search brought up some amazing details of this story.

Bring up

• Meaning: Turn on power or start, as of a machine Wait a minute while
• Example: I bring up my computer.

Bring up

• Meaning: Vomit
• Example: I was very ill today; I kept bringing up everything I ate.

CALL

Call away

Summon; to cause to depart

Call down

Pray for; to request from God

Call for

Shout out in order to summon (a person)

Ask for in a loud voice

Request, demand

Necessitate, demand

Stop at a place and ask for (someone)

Call in

Communicate with a base etc, by telephone

Summon someone, especially for help or advice

Call off

Recall; to cancel or call a halt to

Call on

Visit (a person); to pay a call to

Select (a student in a classroom, etc.) to provide an answer

Request or ask something of (a person); to select for a task

Have recourse to; to summon up

Correct; to point out an error or untruth

Specify, especially in detail

Order into service; to summon into service

Challenge; denounce; point out; charge

Call away, Call down Meaning & Examples

Call away

• Meaning: Summon; to cause to depart
• Example: I was called away from the meeting to deal with a medical emergency.

Call down

• Meaning: Pray for; to request from God
• Example: I shall call down God’s wrath upon you!

Call for Meaning & Examples

Call for

• Meaning: Shout out in order to summon (a person)
• Example: I leant out of the back door and called for Lucy.

Call for

• Meaning: Ask for in a loud voice
• Example: We finished the main course in short order and called for more wine.

Call for

• Meaning: Request, demand
• Example: The government has called for an end to hostilities in the region.

Call for

• Meaning: Necessitate, demand
• Example: This situation calls for a high degree of courage.

Call for

• Meaning: Stop at a place and ask for (someone)
• Example: I’ll call for you just after midday.

Call in, Call off Meaning & Examples

Call in

• Meaning: Communicate with a base etc, by telephone
• Example: I was too unwell to work yesterday so I called in sick.

Call in

• Meaning: Summon someone, especially for help or advice
• Example: The government called in the army to deal with the riots.

Call off

• Meaning: Recall; to cancel or call a halt to
• Example: If you want me to call off the dog, then get off my land.

Call on Meaning & Examples

Call on

• Meaning: Visit (a person); to pay a call to
• Example: I really should call on my aunt more often.

Call on

• Meaning: Select (a student in a classroom, etc.) to provide an answer
• Example: He sat there, baffled, hoping nobody would call on him.

Call on

• Meaning: Request or ask something of (a person); to select for a task
• Example: The king called on his subjects to take up arms and defend the kingdom.

Call on

• Meaning: Have recourse to; to summon up
• Example: Exhausted, he called on his last ounce of strength.

Call on

• Meaning: Correct; to point out an error or untruth
• Example: The salesman persisted in quoting a rate higher than was listed, until we called him on it.

Call out Meaning & Examples

Call out

• Meaning: Specify, especially in detail
• Example: They call out 304 stainless steel in the drawing, but the part was made from aluminum.

Call out

• Meaning: Order into service; to summon into service
• Example: The Governor called out the National Guard.

Call out

• Meaning: Challenge; denounce; point out; charge
• Example: She called them out on their lies.

CARRY

Carry off

Transport away

Act convincingly;

to succeed at giving the impression of (e.g.) knowledge, confidence, or familiarity

Cause death

Carry on

Continue or proceed as before

Take baggage or luggage onto an airplane, rather than check it

Have or maintain

Act or behave; especially to misbehave so as to attract attention

Have an illicit sexual relationship

Carry out

Hold while moving it out

Fulfill

Carry over

Transfer (something) to a later point in time

Carry off

• Meaning: Transport away
• Example: I need a truck to carry off all this furniture.

Carry off

• Meaning: Act convincingly; to succeed at giving the impression of (e.g.) knowledge, confidence, or familiarity
• Example: The actress carried off a difficult performance.

Carry off

• Meaning: Cause death
• Example: Malaria carried off many people.

Carry on Meaning and Examples

Carry on

• Meaning: Continue or proceed as before
• Example: I’ll be gone for a few days, but I hope you will carry on in my absence.

Carry on

• Meaning: Take baggage or luggage onto an airplane, rather than check it
• Example: You may only carry on items that are smaller than a certain size.

Carry on

• Meaning: Have or maintain
• Example: It is difficult to carry on a conversation with so many distractions.

Carry on

• Meaning: Act or behave; especially to misbehave so as to attract attention
• Example: I really wish you wouldn’t carry on like that in public!

Carry on

• Meaning: Have an illicit sexual relationship
• Example: I thought he was my friend, but all the time he was carrying on with my wife!

Carry out, Carry over Meaning and Examples

Carry out

• Meaning: Hold while moving it out
• Example: We’ll have to carry the piano out of the shop.

Carry out

• Meaning: Fulfill
• Example: She finally carried out her lifelong ambition when she appeared in a Hollywood blockbuster.

Carry over

• Meaning: Transfer (something) to a later point in time
• Example: The rent was carried over to December.

Check

Check out

Confirm and pay for goods and services at a facility when leaving

Withdraw (an item), as from a library, and have the withdrawal recorded

Record (someone) as leaving the premises or as taking something therefrom,

as from a library or shop

Examine, inspect, look at closely, ogle; to investigate

Prove (after an investigation) to be the case / in order

Check up

Verify through brief investigation or examination

Check up on

Examine or inspect something in order to determine its condition

Check out Meaning and Examples

Check out

• Meaning: Confirm and pay for goods and services at a facility when leaving
• Example: I’m done shopping, so I’ll go check out now.

Check out

• Meaning: Withdraw (an item), as from a library, and have the withdrawal recorded
• Example: He checked his favorite mystery out for the twenty-third time.

Check out

• Meaning: Record (someone) as leaving the premises or as taking something therefrom, as from a library or shop
• Example: The library assistant was checking people out.

Check out

• Meaning: Examine, inspect, look at closely, ogle; to investigate
• Example: He checked out the rumor, and managed to verify that it was true.

Check out

• Meaning: Prove (after an investigation) to be the case / in order
• Example: The first two leads check out; I’ll assume the third one is also valid.

Check by, Check up, Check up on Meaning and Examples

Check by

• Meaning: Visit a place to check something
• Example: We checked by the office to see if the stuff was ready.

Check up

• Meaning: Verify through brief investigation or examination
• Example: I dropped by to check up on my friend.

Check up on

• Meaning: Examine or inspect something in order to determine its condition
• Example: I will check up on the car tomorrow.

Check in, Check on Meaning and Examples

Check in

• Meaning: Register on arriving at a hotel or at the airport
• Example: They checked in at the Ritz yesterday.

Check on

• Meaning: look at someone or something so that you are certain they are safe, satisfactory etc.
• Example: I sent Tom to check on the kids.

COME

Come about: Come to pass; to develop; to occur; to take place; to happen

Come across: Give an appearance or impression; to project a certain image

Come across: Find, usually by accident

Come after: Pursue, follow

Follow, to succeed, to be the successor of

Come along: Accompany

Progress; to make progress

Come apart: Break, separate

Come around: Change one’s mind

Come at: Get to, especially with effort or difficulty

Attack, to harass

Accept (a situation); to agree to do; to try

Come away: Become separated from something away

Distance oneself (from)

Come back: Return to one’s possession, especially of memories

Return to a former state, usually a desirable one

Retort

Come before: Appear publicly in front of someone superior

Be of greater importance (than)

Be judged, decided or discussed by authority

Precede

Come between: Affect negatively or cause discord between (someone) and another person

Come by: Obtain; to get, especially by chance or involuntarily

Come near to; to pass; to visit

Come down: Descend, fall down, collapse

Be demolished

Decrease

Reach a decision

Be passed through time

Return from an elevated state of consciousness or emotion

Come down on: Punish

Come down upon: Criticise, reprimand severely

Come down to: Reach by moving down or reducing

Depend upon, basically, ultimately or in essence

Come down with: Contract or get; to show symptoms of an illness

Come for: Search for something or someone, in order to catch them/it

Come forth: Move forward and into view, to emerge, to appear

Come from: Have as one’s birthplace or nationality

Come in: Enter

Arrive

Become relevant, applicable or useful

Become available

Have a strong enough signal to be able to be received well

Join or enter; to begin playing with a group

Begin transmitting

Function in the indicated manner

Finish a race or similar competition in a particular position

Come in for: Be subjected to

Come into: Inherit (money)

Be a factor in

Come off: Have some success, to succeed

Appear; to seem; to project a certain quality

Come on: Show sexual or relational interest through words or sometimes actions

Appear on a television broadcast

Progress, to develop

Encounter, discover; to come upon.

Make a romantic or sexual advance to; to hit on

Start to

Be discovered, be revealed

Be published, be issued

End up or result

Come out of the closet

Be deducted from

Leave (out of), exit from

Express one’s opinion openly

Come out in: Be afflicted by

Say something unexpected

Come out of: To develop from something

Come out with: Say something publicly and unexpectedly

Make something available/to be produced or published

Come over: Affect

Come round: Change one’s opinion to a prevailing one

Recover consciousness, to come to

Visit someone’s home or other regular place

Come through: Survive, to endure

Succeed

Not to let somebody down, keep one’s promise

Come through with: Provide something needed

Come to: Recover consciousness after fainting etc.

Total; to amount to

Devote attention to in due course; to come around to

Befall; to affect; to happen to; to come upon

Regard or specify, as narrowing a field of choices by category

Come together: Arrive at a destination with someone after having travelled there with each other

Come under: Come underneath (something)

Be included or classified under

Be subjected to, be under the auspices of

Come up: Come towards, to approach

Emerge or become known, especially unexpectedly

Come to attention, present itself; to arrive or appear

Appear

Draw near in time

Rise (above the horizon)

Begin to feel the effects of a recreational drug

Come up to: Approach

Come up with: Invent, create, or think of.

Come upon: Come across; to encounter; to stumble upon; to discover or find

Befall; to affect; to happen to

Come with: Join and come along

Come about, Come across Meaning and Examples

Come about

• Meaning: Happen, occur
• Example: Can you tell me how the accident came about?

Come across

• Meaning: Give an appearance or impression; to project a certain image
• Example: A business suit and briefcase help her to come across as the competent professional she is.

Come across

• Meaning: Find, usually by accident
• Example: In the meadow he will come across a rare flower.

Come after, Come along Meaning and Examples

Come after

• Meaning: Pursue, follow
• Example: Don’t try to come after me.

Come after

• Meaning: Follow, to succeed, be the successor of
• Example: Who came after Richard the Lionheart?

Come along

• Meaning: Accompany
• Example: I’d like you to come along with me to the opera.

Come along

• Meaning: Progress; to make progress
• Example: Your English is really coming along!

Come apart, Come around, Come away Meaning and Examples

Come apart

• Meaning: Break, separate
• Example: The cup just came apart in my hands.

Come around

• Meaning: Change one’s mind
• Example: Give her time, and she may come around and see things your way.

Come away

• Meaning: Become separated from something
• Example: The cakes have started to come away from the pan.

Come away

• Meaning: Distance oneself (from)
• Example: He goes to the park to come away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Come at Meaning and Examples

Come at

• Meaning: Get to, especially with effort or difficulty
• Example: His precise meaning was not easy to come at.

Come at

• Meaning: Attack, to harass
• Example: As I backed away, he came at me with a knife.

Come at

• Meaning: Accept (a situation); agree to do; try
• Example: Nah, mate – I′m not going to come at that again. Too risky.

Come back Meaning and Examples

Come back

• Meaning: Return to one’s possession, especially of memories
• Example: Suddenly it all came back to him, the tea, the petite madeleines, his mother.

Come back

• Meaning: Return to a former state, usually a desirable one
• Example: Many people counted him out, but he came back better than ever.

Come back

• Meaning: Return
• Example: I left work and came back home early.

Come before Meaning and Examples

Come before

• Meaning: Appear publicly in front of someone superior
• Example: He was summoned to come before the king.

Come before

• Meaning: Be of greater importance (than)
• Example: Looking out for your family should come before making money.

Come before

• Meaning: Be judged, decided or discussed by authority
• Example: Jones’ behavior will come before the board of directors.

Come before

• Meaning: Precede
• Example: F comes before G in the alphabet.

Come between, Come by Meaning and Examples

Come between

• Meaning: Affect negatively or cause discord between (someone) and another person
• Example: Our love is so strong that nothing can come between us.

Come by

• Meaning: Obtain; to get, especially by chance or involuntarily
• Example: A loyal friend is hard to come by.

Come by

• Meaning: Come near to; pass; visit
• Example: Your beau came by while you were shopping.

Come down, Come down on, Come down upon, Come down to, Come down with Meaning and Examples

Come down

• Meaning: Descend, fall down, collapse
• Example: A tree came down and hit me on the head.

Come down

• Meaning: Be demolished
• Example: The damage sustained in the fire is so great that the whole building will have to come down.

Come down

• Meaning: Decrease
• Example: Real estate prices have come down since the peak of the boom.

Come down

• Meaning: Reach a decision
• Example: I can’t guess which way the board will come down on the project.

Come down

• Meaning: Be passed through time
• Example: Much wisdom has come down in the form of proverbs.

Come down

• Meaning: Return from an elevated state of consciousness or emotion
• Example: He finally came down from his post-bonus high.

Come down on

• Meaning: Punish
• Example: The company came down on him very hard after he was found skipping work.

Come down upon

• Meaning: Criticise, reprimand severely
• Example: They’re coming down heavily upon people for not paying their taxes.

Come down to

• Meaning: Reach by moving down or reducing
• Example: Come down to my place someday and have lunch.

Come down to

• Meaning: Depend upon, basically, ultimately or in essence
• Example: The game is going to come down to the last five seconds.

Come down with

• Meaning: Contract or get; to show symptoms of an illness With a scratchy throat and a cough, it feels like
• Example: I’m coming down with a cold.

Come for, Come forth, Come from Meaning and Examples

Come for

• Meaning: Search for something or someone, in order to catch them/it
• Example: You should hide: the police are coming for you.

Come forth

• Meaning: Move forward and into view, emerge, appear
• Example: Suddenly a man appeared and came forth out of the fog.

Come from

• Meaning: Have as one’s birthplace or nationality
• Example: I come from Thailand.

Come in, Come in for Meaning and Examples

Come in

• Meaning: Enter
• Example: Please come in and look around.

Come in

• Meaning: Arrive
• Example: That flight just came in.

Come in

• Meaning: Become relevant, applicable or useful
• Example: The third stage of the plan is where Team B comes in.

Come in

• Meaning: Become available
• Example: Blueberries will be coming in next month.

Come in

• Meaning: Have a strong enough signal to be able to be received well
• Example: Most of the neighbors get 14 channels, but only two of them come in well here.

Come in

• Meaning: Join or enter; to begin playing with a group
• Example: They started together, but the drummer came in late.

Come in

• Meaning: Begin transmitting
• Example: This is Charlie 456 to base. Come in, base. Do you read me?

Come in

• Meaning: Function in the indicated manner
• Example: Four-wheel drive sure came in handy while the bridge was washed out.

Come in

• Meaning: Finish a race or similar competition in a particular position
• Example: The horse I had bet on came in fourth in the second race.

Come in for

• Meaning: Be subjected to
• Example: If you go into the forest, you’ll come in for a nasty surprise.

Come into Meaning and Examples

Come into

• Meaning: Inherit (money)
• Example: After his father died, he came into a large fortune.

Come into

• Meaning: Be a factor in
• Example: Money doesn’t come into it.

Come off Meaning and Examples

Come off

• Meaning: Have some success, to succeed
• Example: He tried his Chaplin impression, but it didn’t really come off.

Come off

• Meaning: To happen, take place
• Example: Did the trip to Paris ever come off?

Come on Meaning and Examples

Come on

• Meaning: Encouragement
• Example: Come on, my son, it’s time to pack away your toys.

Come on

• Meaning: Appear on a television broadcast
• Example: I was going to turn off the TV, but my favorite show came on.

Come on

• Meaning: Progress, to develop
• Example: The new garden is coming on nicely.

Come on

• Meaning: Encounter, discover; to come upon.
• Example: Turning the corner, I came on Julia sitting by the riverbank.

Come on

• Meaning: Make a romantic or sexual advance to; to hit on
• Example: He was really coming on to me at the party.

Come on

• Meaning: Start to
• Example: It came on to snow after dusk.

Come on

• Meaning: Be discovered, be revealed
• Example: It finally came out that he had been lying all the time.

Come on

• Meaning: Be published, be issued
• Example: My new book comes out next week.

Come on

• Meaning: End up or result
• Example: There were a lot of problems at the start, but it all came out well in the end.

Come on

• Meaning: Come out of the closet
• Example: He came out about being gay to his parents last week.

Come on

• Meaning: Be deducted from
• Example: That comes out of my paycheck.

Come on

• Meaning: Leave (out of), exit from
• Example: The mouse came out of the hole.

Come on

• Meaning: Express one’s opinion openly
• Example: You had come out in favor of the French Revolution.

Come out in, Come out of, Come out with Meaning and Examples

Come out in

• Meaning: Be afflicted by
• Example: He’s come out in spots.

Come out in

• Meaning: Say something unexpected
• Example: He came out with a very dubious excuse.

Come out of

• Meaning: To develop from something
• Example: The book came out of his experiences in Rome.

Come out with

• Meaning: Say something publicly and unexpectedly
• Example: He comes out with the strangest things!

Come out with

• Meaning: Make something available/to be produced or published
• Example: The company came out with a new line in just three months.

Come over, come round Meaning and Examples

Come over

• Meaning: Affect
• Example: I apologise for my behaviour last night. I don’t know what came over me.

Come round

• Meaning: Change one’s opinion to a prevailing one
• Example: He’s a reasonable man. I knew he’d come round eventually.

Come round

• Meaning: Recover consciousness, to come to
• Example: After the blow to my head, I took a while to come round.

Come round

• Meaning: Visit someone’s home or other regular place
• Example: Would you like to come round for dinner tonight?

Come through, Come through with Meaning and Examples

Come through

• Meaning: Survive, to endure
• Example: With such a weak heart he was lucky to come through the operation.

Come through

• Meaning: Succeed
• Example: The team came through in the end and won the pennant.

Come through

• Meaning: Not to let somebody down, keep one’s promise
• Example: She really came through for us when the project was in trouble.

Come through with

• Meaning: Provide something needed
  Example:        

Come to Meaning and Examples

Come to

• Meaning: Recover consciousness after fainting etc.
• Example: She came to with the aid of smelling salts.

Come to

• Meaning: Total; to amount to
• Example: How much does that come to?; the bill comes to £10 each.

Come to

• Meaning: Devote attention to in due course; to come around to
• Example: I’ll come to your question in a minute.

Come to

• Meaning: Befall; to affect; happen to; come upon
• Example: I pray no harm will come to you.

Come to

• Meaning: Regard or specify, as narrowing a field of choices by category
• Example: He’s the best when it comes to riveting detective fiction.

Come together, Come under Meaning and Examples

Come together

• Meaning: Arrive at a destination with someone after having travelled there with each other
• Example: We bumped into each other earlier, so we came together in a taxi.

Come under

• Meaning: Come underneath (something)
• Example: Why don’t you come under my umbrella? There’s plenty of room.

Come under

• Meaning: Be included or classified under
• Example: To sympathisers, though, all of his crimes came under the general heading of misdemeanors.

Come under

• Meaning: Be subjected to, be under the auspices of
• Example: Eventually I was promoted, and a small team of recruits came under my authority.

Come up, Come up to, Come up with Meaning and Examples

Come up

• Meaning: Come towards, to approach
• Example: I was standing on the corner when Nick came up and asked for a cigarette.

Come up

• Meaning: Emerge or become known, especially unexpectedly
• Example: Unless anything comes up, I’ll be there every day this week.

Come up

• Meaning: Happen
• Example: I’ll let you know if any vacancies come up.

Come up

• Meaning: Appear
• Example: He came up before a judge and was fined a thousand dollars.

Come up

• Meaning: Draw near in time
• Example: The summer holidays are coming up.

Come up

• Meaning: Rise (above the horizon)
• Example: It’ll be warmer once the sun comes up.

Come up

• Meaning: Begin to feel the effects of a recreational drug
• Example: I could tell from her expression she was coming up already.

Come up to

• Meaning: Approach
• Example: We’re coming up to the end of the night, so please finish your glasses.

Come up with

• Meaning: Invent, create, or think of.
• Example: How can you come up with such brilliant ideas?

Come upon, Come with Meaning and Examples

Come upon

• Meaning: Come across; to encounter; stumble upon; discover or find
• Example: We came upon the skeleton while we were hiking.

Come upon

• Meaning: Befall; to affect; happen to
• Example: I pray no harm will come upon you.

Come with

• Meaning: Join and come along
• Example: We’re going out to lunch. Do you want to come with?

CRACK

Crack down: Enforce more stringently or more thoroughly

Crack down on: Enforce laws or punish (something) more vigilantly

Crack on: Continue at a (normally uninteresting) task

Continue apace

Crack up: Laugh heartily

Cause to laugh heartily

Become insane; to suffer a mental break down

Cry up; to extol

Crack out: Produce in large volumes mechanically or as if by machine

Crack down, Crack down on, Crack out Meaning and Examples

Crack down

• Meaning: Enforce more stringently or more thoroughly
• Example: The authorities are trying to crack down on drunk driving during the holidays.

Crack down on

• Meaning: Enforce laws or punish (something) more vigilantly
• Example: Every year around the holidays, the police launch a campaign to crack down on drunk driving.

Crack out

• Meaning: Produce in large volumes mechanically or as if by machine
• Example: The teenager spent hours cranking out volumes of bad poetry.

Crack on Meaning and Examples

Crack on

• Meaning: Continue at a (normally uninteresting) task
• Example: I must crack on with my essay.

Crack on

• Meaning: Continue apace
• Example: The project is really cracking on.

Crack up Meaning and Examples

Crack up

• Meaning: Laugh heartily
• Example: It was hilarious. We were cracking up the whole time.

Crack up

• Meaning: Cause to laugh heartily
• Example: The joke about the nuns in the bath cracked me up.

Crack up

• Meaning: Become insane; to suffer a mental breakdown
• Example: She got through the war, but cracked up when her sister died.

Crack up

• Meaning: Cry up; to extol
• Example: This new computer system is not what it was cracked up to be.

CUT

Cut back: Reduce spending

Reduce consumption

Cut down: Bring down by cutting

Reduce the amount of something

Cut off: Stop providing funds to someone

End abruptly

Interrupt (someone speaking)

Turn off or switch off (an electrical device)

Cut out: Refrain from (doing something, using something etc.), to stop/cease (doing something)

Remove, omit

Separate from a herd

Stop working, to switch off; (of a person on the telephone etc.) to be inaudible, be disconnected

Leave suddenly

Arrange

Cut through: Deal with an issue quickly

Take a shortcut through

Cut up: Cut into smaller pieces, parts, or sections

Lacerate; wound by multiple lacerations; injure or damage by cutting, or as if by cutting

Severely criticize or censure; to subject to hostile criticism

Comprise a particular selection of runners

Cut back, Cut down Meaning and Examples

Cut back

• Meaning: Reduce spending
• Example: We need to cut back heavily on office supplies. Is there another vendor we can use?

Cut back

• Meaning: Reduce consumption
• Example: He needs to cut back on doughnuts. He weighs 289 pounds!

Cut down

• Meaning: Bring down by cutting
• Example: They want to cut down several trees to make room for the parking lot.

Cut down

• Meaning: Reduce the amount of something
• Example: He wants to cut down on extra steps.

Cut off Meaning and Examples

Cut off

• Meaning: Stop providing funds to someone
• Example: His parents cut him off to encourage him to find a job.

Cut off

• Meaning: End abruptly
• Example: My phone call was cut off before I could get the information.

Cut off

• Meaning: Interrupt (someone speaking)
• Example: That dingbat cut me off as I was about to conclude my theses.

Cut off

• Meaning: Turn off or switch off (an electrical device)
• Example: Cut off the lamp so I can get some sleep.

Cut out Meaning and Examples

Cut out

• Meaning: Refrain from (doing something, using something etc.), to stop/cease (doing something)
• Example: He had to cut out smoking in order to be prepared for the marathon.

Cut out

• Meaning: Remove, omit
• Example: If we cut out the middle-man, we will both have better profits.

Cut out

• Meaning: Separate from a herd
• Example: The cowboy cut out the unbranded heifers.

Cut out

• Meaning: Stop working, to switch off; (of a person on the telephone etc.) to be inaudible, be disconnected
• Example: It was around then that the engine suddenly cut out.

Cut out

• Meaning: Leave suddenly
• Example: He must have cut out of the party.

Cut out

• Meaning: Arrange
• Example: He has his work cut out for him.

Cut through Meaning and Examples

Cut through

• Meaning: Deal with an issue quickly
• Example: Can we cut through the bureaucracy and make a decision on the spot?

Cut through

• Meaning: Take a shortcut through
• Example: I usually cut through the woods to get home, but last night it was too dark.

Cut up Meaning and Examples

Cut up

• Meaning: Cut into smaller pieces, parts, or sections
• Example: With a little practice, you can cut up a whole chicken yourself for frying.

Cut up

• Meaning: Lacerate; wound by multiple lacerations; injure or damage by cutting, or as if by cutting
• Example: The attackers cut him up pretty bad.

Cut up

• Meaning: Severely criticize or censure; to subject to hostile criticism
• Example: The reviewer cut up the book mercilessly.

Cut up

• Meaning: Comprise a particular selection of runners
• Example: The race has cut up badly with no real opposition to Serendipity.