Phrasal verbs |
| blurt out |
say something suddenly and without thinking about the effect it will have, usually because you are nervous or excited |
She blurted out his name, then gasped as she realised what she'd done. |
| catch on |
understand |
He didn't catch on at first. |
| catch on |
become popular or fashionable |
Sports drinks have caught on as consumers have become more health-conscious. |
| come out |
become available to buy or see |
The magazine comes out every Thursday. |
| come out |
become easy to notice |
These differences don't come out until you put the two groups in a room together. |
| come out |
become known |
He said it'ff aff come out in court. |
| come out |
be spoken, heard, or understood in a particular way |
That came out wrong. Let me rephrase it. |
| come out with |
say something suddenly, usually something that surprises or shocks people |
You never know what the children are going to come out with. |
| dry up |
stop talking because you have forgotten what you were going to say |
I hope I don't dry up in the middle of my speech. |
| get across |
make people understand something |
We've got to get the message across more clearly. |
| get (a)round |
if news gets (a)round, a lot of people hear it |
The rumours got around town very quickly, didn't they? |
| get through (to) |
be connected to a place by telephone; make someone understand what you are trying to say |
I tried calling him but I couldn't get through for some reason. |
| let on |
talk about something that is intended to be a secret |
He knows more than he lets on. |
| pass on |
give someone something, for example a message, that someone else has given you |
When you've read this message, please pass it on. |
| put across/over |
explain an idea, belief, etc in a way that is easy to understand |
Television can be a useful way of putting across health messages. |
| set down |
write something on a piece of paper so that it will not be forgotten and can be looked at later |
She set all these
events down in her diary. |
| set down |
state officially how something should be done |
These conditions were set down by the United Nations. |
| shout down |
make it difficult to hear what someone says by shouting while they are speaking |
The Minister was shouted down as he tried to justify the government's decision. |
| speak out |
state your opinion firmly and publicly about something, especially in order to protest against or defend something |
He had always spoken out in favour of women's rights. |
| talk over |
discuss a problem or a plan |
I know you're still angry; let's talk ,t over tonight. |
| talk round |
succeed in persuading someone to agree to something |
I'm sure I can talk her round. |
| talk round |
discuss something in a general way and without dealing with the most important issues |
We'rejust talking round the problem at the moment; let's try to come up with some concrete solutions. |
