PHRASAL VERBS - PREPOSITIONAL VERBS

English

Example

Spanish

A
agree to

I wish she would agree to my proposal. estar de acuerdo con algo

agree with

I agree with him on that point.

estar de acuerdo con alguien

ask after

Mr. Smith asked after John.

preguntar por la salud de alguien

ask in

He was asked in.

inviter a entrar

ask over

Yes, you can ask your friend over.

invitar a la casa

back off

She was told to back off.

retrodecer

be in

Are your parents in?

estar en casa

be off

I'm off now.

irse // estar apagado

bear (up) on

These facts do not bear on this matter. afectar

bear with

Please bear with him for a moment

while he tries to put this straight.

tener paciencia con alguien

beg off

I'm sorry, I have to beg off.

disculparse

black out

And then she just blacked out.

desmayarse

blame on

Don't blame it on her.

culpar

blow up

The bomb might have blown up.

explotar

break away
break free
break loose

At last, the hostage could break away

from his captors.

escaparse

break down

Finally her sister broke down.

colapsarse

break off

I didn't mean to break off anything.

romper (se) relaciones

break up

Sue and Tim broke up last year.

romper un relacin, separarse

bring along

This year has brought along some

significant changes.

traer

bring down

(1) Taxes were never brought down.

(2) The president was brought down
by this scandal.

(1) reducer, bajar

(2) derribar, derrocar

bring in

My job brings in 400 dollars per week.

generar

bring up

(1) She was brought up in Wisconsin.

(2) Why do you have to bring that up?

(1) criar, educar

(2) mencionar

build up

He needs to do some exercises to build

formarse, aumentar, fortalecerse
himself up.

burst in with

She burst in with the bad news.

interrumpir

butt in

How can we talk when you keep

butting in all the time?

interrumpir

call down

The teacher called down all the

students who were late.

regaar

call in

He called Kelly in.

llamar para que entre

call off

I had to call off the barbecue because

of the bad weather.

cancelar

calm down

Please calm down.

calmarse

carry on

Please carry on with your homework.

seguir

catch up (on)

I need some time to catch up on that

incident.

ponerse al da

check out

I will check it out.

comprobar, verificar

check up (on)

There is no need to check up on me.

controlar

clean down

My hands were covered with mud, and

so I cleaned them down.

limpiar, lavar

clean off

Can you clean off the table, please?

limpiar

clean up

Can you clean your room up a little?

limpiar, ordenar

clear away

Please clear your stuff away.

guardar

close down

The shop was closed down by the

police.

cerrar

close in (on)

She closed in quietly.

acercarse

close up

The restaurant was closed up by the

health department.

cerrar, clausurar

come around

I knew he would come around in the

end.

entender

come back

Will the good old days ever come

back?

regresar

come by

(1) My aunt came by yesterday.

(2) I hope he came by this money
honestly.

come over

Why don't you come over next

weekend?

(1) pasar a visita

(2) obtener

pasar, venir, visitar

(1) It began to cool off after the

cool down / off thunderstorm.
(2) Cool down guys!

(1) enfriar

count (up) on

Can we count on you?

contar con alguien

cut back (on)

I have to cut back on the water usage. reducir

cut out

Cut it out!

terminar, cortar

decide (up) on

I decided on ice tea.

decidirse por

die off/out

That species died out million years ago.

exstinguirse

dirty up

Don't dirty your pants up!

ensuciar

do in

He tried to do his father in.

acabar con, fastidiar, matar

do over

I probably wouldn't do it over.

hacerlo otra vez, repetir

do up

(1) Do up the present quickly.

(2) Please do up your buttons.

(1) envolver
(2) abrochar

do without

I guess I will have to do without lunch

today.

pasarse sin

draw near

As the time drew near,...

acercarse

(2) calmarse

dress down

His father dressed him down again.

regaar

drink up

Drink up, and let's going.

beberse todo

drive at

Well, you must see what I'm driving at. insinuar

drive on

We drove on till night.

drop by

I hope you guys can drop by our house

pasar, visitar
some time.

drop in (on)

I can't believe who dropped in on us

last night.

visitar

drop off

You can drop me off at the next red

light.

dejar salir

dry out

The clothes finally dried out.

secarse

ease off

The storm eased off a little.

calmarse

eat up

Eat up, and let's get going.

comer todo

edge away

The students laughed and edged away

alejarse lentamente
from him.

end up

When will all this end up?

terminar

enter (into)

We need more members to enter our

team.

entrar, unirse

even out

The surface of the road was evened

out.

aplanar, nivelar

even up

Can they even up the score tonight?

igualar, equilibrar,

face up (to)

You have to face up to challenges.

enfrentar

fall apart

The whole thing falls apart.

desmoronarse

fall back on

I had to fall back on my savings.

recurrir a

fall behind
(in/on)
get behind
(in/on)

He's falling behind in his car

payments.

atrasarse

fall through

I hope my party next Saturday doesn't

fall through.

fracasar

fasten up

Please fasten up your jacket.

abrocharse

feel for

I really feel for you.

tener lastima

fight back (at)

It's hard for him to fight back.

responder, defenderse

fight down

I fought down the anger.

contenerse

figure on

I figure on the extra income.

contar con

figure out

I just can't figure her out.

entender

seguir adelante

fill in

fill in (for)

(1) I better fill the cracks in with

something.
(2) Would you fill in the form, please?
I will have to fill in for him till he gets
back from his vacation.

(1) rellenar
(2) llenar formatos
suplir, sustituir a alguien

fill out

Would you fill out the form, please?

fill up

(1) The hole filled up with water and

had to be pumped.
(2) We will fill up at the next gas
station.

llenar
(1) llenar
(2) llenar con gasolina

finish off

Finish off your cup of coffee, please.

acabar con

finish up

I will finish my homework up in a few

minutes.

terminar con

fit in(to)

It just doesn't fit in.

encajar

fix up

Is my bike fixed up yet?

arreglar

fly in(to)

When did you fly in?

llegar en avin, volar

fool around

Stop fooling around.

actuar como tonto

gather up

Let's gather our things up and leave.

recoger

get across

How can I get it across to you

hacer entender

get along with

He couldn't get along with her

mother-in-law.

llevarse bien

get at

What exactly is he getting at?

llegar a

get back

When will you get back?

regresar

get back at

He will get back at him someday.

vengarse

get back to

I will get back to you in a minute.

regresar

get by (on)

She can't get by on that much money.

arreglrselas con

get down to

Now, let's get down to homework.

empezar

get into

He managed to get himself into the

class he wanted.

entrar, meterse

get off

I have to get off all my packages.

enviar //bajar del autobus

get on

How are you getting on?

avanzar // subir el autobus

(1) I need to get on doing my

homework.
(2) How do you get on with Sam?

(1) seguir
(2) entenderse con alguien

get out of

You've got to get out of there.

salir

get over

(1) It took him a long time to get over

the heart attack.
(2) He couldn't get over the huge rock
in the path, so he went around it.

get through

I tried calling you, but I couldn't get

through.

get up

(1) Today I got up at 10 am.

(2) We got up a team on very short
notice.

give away (to)

(1) He gave his car away to his

brother.
(2) Don't give the answer away.

(1) regalar
(2) revelar o divulger algo

give in (to)

Why does she always give in to her

brother?

rendirse, ceder

get on with

(1) superarse
(2) pasar encima de de

pasar, lograr coneccin

(1) levantarse
(2) levantar

give up

Are you sure you want to give up your

career?

renunciar

glance over

My teacher just glanced over my

homework today.

hechar un vistazo

go after

He went after the man who mugged

him.

perseguir

go along with

I'll go along with you on that decision. seguir la corriente

go around

There's not enough milk to go around.

alcanzar, ser suficiente

go away

Please go away!

alejarse

go back

I'll never go back.

regresar

go in

They went in after us.

entrar

go in for

He goes in for playing soccer.

gustar

go off

(1) The bomb went off.

(2) My party went off as planned.

(1) explotar
(2) salir

go off with

I guess she went off with her new

boyfriend.

irse con alguien

go out (with)

Will she go out with Mike next Friday

evening?

salir con
(1) pasar por

go through

(1) The truck wouldn't go through the

tunnel.
(2) He went through his pockets,
looking for his wallet.
(3) How can you go through all the
chocolate so fast?
(4) You won't believe what I've went
through.
(5) I guess we need to go through the
whole song a few more times.
(1) I was afraid that our ship would go
under.
(2) The company went under.

(1) hundirse

go under

go without

I just cannot go without some candy

from time to time.

(2) revisar
(3) consumir
(4) sufrir
(5) ensayar

(2) fracasar
abstenerse de algo, pasar sin

H
(1) pronunciar algo, declarar

hand down

(1) The court has not yet handed down

a ruling.
(2) He will hand this down to his
granddaughter.

hand out

The teacher handed out the test to the

surprised students.

repartir

hang around
(with)

I usually spend much time hanging

around with my friends.

pasar el tiempo con

hang on

(1) Hang on, please.

(2) They couldn't hang on much longer.

(1) esperar
(2) aguantar

hang up

Why did you hang up on me?

colgar

(2) heredar

happen (upon) I just happened upon her.

ocurrir, pasar

heal up

My injury healed up in around no time.

sanar

hear out

Hear me out, will you? I have more to

escuchar sin interrumpir, dejar

tell.

hablar

heat up

How soon will lunch be heated up?

calentar

help out

Can you help me out?

ayudar

hide away

Can you hide this book away where no

one will find it?

desconder

hide out
(from)

Ben was hiding out from the police.

desconderse de

hit back (at)

He hit me, but I didn't hit back at him.

regresar el golpe, contraatacar

hit on

Tom was hitting on Mike's fiance.

ligar con alguien

hit (upon)

I guess I have hit upon something.

desubrir

hold back (on)

They hold back on signing the new deal. dar largas

hold on

Hold on a minute! I have to check this

first.

hold out

I don't know how long they can hold out. aguantar, resistir

hold up

Some moron tried to hold me up.

asaltar

hurry on/up

Hurry on, will you? I got some errands

to run today.

apurarse

idle away

Don't idle the whole day away.

desperciciar, perder el tiempo

insist (on)

He also inisted on it.

insistir

invite over

Let's invite them over for dinner.

invitar

I just jumped into the pool and had a

refreshing swim.

saltar

keep at

I need to keep at this.

seguir haciendo

keep off

Please keep off the lawn.

abstenerse de, alejarse de

keep on

(1) It's a little chilly in here, so I better

keep my coat on.
(2) Just keep on practicing your scales
by simply playing them up and down.

esperar

J
jump in(to)
K

(1) quedarse con, dejar puesto

(2) seguir

(1) Keep out of this and mind your own

business.
(2) My door is closed. Keep out!

(1) mantenerse fuera

knock off

Knock it off!

parar de hacer algo

knock over

Her reaction simply knocked me over.

sorprender

keep out (of)

(2) no entrar

L
lead up to

(1) A narrow path leads up to his cabin. (1) llevar

(2) llegar a
(2) She was just leading up to
something when he interrupted.

leak out

I hope that news does not leak out.

filtrarse

lean over

Lean over and pick it up yourself!

agacharse

leave out (of)

Leave me out of it, please.

dejar fuera, excluir

leave up to

They left this decision up to me.

dejar algo a alguien

let down

I won't let you down again.

decepcionar, fallar

let on (about)

I promised I wouldn't let on about her

new job.

delatar (algo a alguien), revelar algo

let up

The storm has let up.

dismunuir, ceder

level off

Things will level off by the end of the

month.

nivelarse

lie down

I need to lie down and take a little nap.

acostarse

light up

We lighted the house up with the

headlights of our automobile.

alumbrar algo

lighten up

Hey, lighten up a little. Enjoy the day.

animarse, relajarse

line up

(1) Everyone, please line up.

(2) Try to line up for tomorrow evening.

(1) hacer una fila

(2) organizarse

live up to

That meal did not live up to my

expectations.

hacer justicia a, satisfacer algo

look back
(at/on)

When I look back on him, I am amazed

at all he has accomplished.

ver hacia atrs, hacer memoria

look in (on)

I will look in on him from time to time.

pasar por

look out (for)

Look out for that car!

cuidar

look up to

She is glad they look up to her.

admirar, adorar alguien

loom up

An old cottage loomed up in the

distance.

aparecer

loosen up

Relax and loosen yourself up.

soltarse

make out

Can you make out what she is saying?

entender

make out with

There are hot pictures of him making

out with a woman.

besarse con alguien

(1) arreglar a alguien
(2) inventar
(3) nachholen

make up

(1) Did she make up the clowns yet?

(2) I made up that story.
(3) I'm sorry, but you can't make up
that test you missed.
(4) Class participation will make up 25%
of your final grade.
(5) They kissed and made up.
(6) You think I make this up?

march on

Time marches on.

pasar, avanzar

mark down

Pineapples are marked down again.

bajar el precio

mark up

Watermelons are marked up again.

subir el precio

mess up

(1) He messed up his room.

(2) The dirty water messed my pants
up.
(3) Losing my job really messed my life
up.

(1) desordenar
(2) ensuciar
(3) trastornar

move in(to)

I moved into a new apartment last

month.

mudarse

move off
(from)

The officer stopped for a minute, asked

some questions, and then moved off.

irse

(4) representar
(5) contentarse
(6) inventar

move on (to)

Alright, let's move on to our next point.

pasar, avanzar

move out (of)

I moved out of my old apartment last

month.

salirse de

move up (to)

How long will it be before they can move

cambiar
her up?

N
nail up

(1) Please nail this picture up.

(2) Who nailed up the door? I can't get
out.

(1) clavar, colgar

(2) cerrar

O
open up

They opened up the border a few weeks

abrir
ago.

order in(to)

The officer ordered me in.

llamar a alguien

pass away/on

Her uncle passed away last summer.

morir, fallecer

pass out

(1) Don't drink until you pass out.

(2) Please can you pass these handouts
out to everyone?

(1) perder la conciencia, desmayarse

(2) repartir

pay off

The time I spent in this project didn't

pay off.

valer la pena, recompensarse

pay up

Please pay all your dues up.

pagar

pick up

(1) Relax. I will pick her up from school.

(2) Help me pick up this guy from the
sidewalk, will you?
(3) The storm picked up about
midnight.
(4) I picked up a little French while I
was in Quebec.

pile up

Exams are piling up on my desk.

amontonarse

plan out

They met and planned out their

strategy.

planear detalladamente, idear

play along

The guy with the guitar came in and

played along.

tocar, jugar con

point out

That's exactly what I pointed out

earlier.

sealar

pop up

I don't know where he's going to pop up

aparecer
next.

power up

Okay, let's power up the engine and get

encender, prender
going.

pull in(to)

A stranger just pulled into our

driveway.

estacionarse

pull up

He reached down and pulled her up.

levanter, subir algo o alguien

put across to

How can I best put this across to them? explicar

put on

(1) Don't put your brother on.

(2) Don't you have some clothes to put
on?

(1) vacilar a alguien

(2) ponerse (ropa)

put off (until)

Can't you just put this off until

aplazar

(1) recoger
(2) levantar
(3) aumentar
(4) aprender algo, captar algo

tomorrow?
I just don't know why I even put up
with you.

aguantar a alguien, soportar alguien

(1) Try to quiet him down.

(2) Ask him to quiet down.

(1) callar alguien

(2) callar, bajar el volumen

raise up

She raised herself up with the greatest

difficulty.

levantarse, salir adelantwe

rattle off

She rattled off the long list of names.

recitar

reach out

I reached out, but there was nothing I

could get hold of.

extender(se)

read over /
through

Please read this text over and tell me

what is about.

leer

rely (up)on

Can we rely on you in this case?

confiar en

ride away / off

I said good-bye and rode off.

irse (en carro, etc.)

ride out

Things are rough around here, but I think

sobrevivir
I can ride it out.

room together

We roomed together in college.

vivir con alguien

rub away

I used that towel to rub away the dirt

on my shoes.

quitar restregando, borrar

rule on

When will the court rule on your

decision?

decidir algo

run around
with

I used to run around with them after

school.

pasar el tiempo

run away

The cat ran away from me.

irse

run down

(1) It appears that the car ran down.

(2) All the critics ran the movie down.

(1) dejar de funcionar

(2) criticar

run off

I ran off as fast as I could.

irse, desaparecer, esfumarse

run off with

The kidnappers ran off with her little

daughter.

escaparse con

run over

(1) He ran over his neighbor's cat.

(2) I ran over the time allotted for the
presentation.

(1) atropellar
(2) exceeder algo

run on

I wanted to stop him, but he ran on.

seguir corriendo

run out of

I'm afraid we ran out of milk and

cookies.

rush in(to)

Don't rush into this job.

entrar rpidamente

save up

I'm saving up money for a new car.

ahorar

(1) I knew what he was up to, because I

saw through him.
(2) I'll see this project through.

(1) no dejarse engaar por,

see through

(1) He refused to sell out to a large

corporation.

(1) vender

put up with
Q
quiet down
R

sell out (to)

(2) apoyar, ayudar

(2) He shouldn't have sold out to them.

(2) vender, traicionar

send away for

I had to send away for a new part.

solicitar

send for

He sent for his secretary.

llamar, hacer venir

send over (to)

She sent me over to her office.

enviar alguien a

set in

The tournament set in early in January.

llegar

set up (for)

I will set up a meeting for next week.

fijar una cita, organizar

settle down

(1) One day they will settle down in a

small cabin in the mountains.
(2) Will you please settle down and
relax?

(1) colocarse, instalarse

(2) calmarse

shoot up

Jane shot up just after she turned

thirteen.

crecer mucho

show off

Stop showing off.

presumir

sign in

Did you remember to sign in?

firmar la entrada

sign up for

Did you remember to sign up for the

class?

inscribirse

sit around

Don't just sit around. Do something!

esperar con brazos cruzados

sit down

Please, sit down and relax.

sentarse

sit in on

You guys mind if I sit in on your

discussion?

estar presente

sit out

I'm not playing. I better sit out this

time.

quedarse sentado (no participar)

sit up

(1) I sat up and read a book.

(2) I wouldn't get such terrible
backaches if I would sit up properly.

(1) sentrse recto

(2) sentarse derecho

sleep in

I slept in this morning.

quedarse en la cama hasta tarde

slim down

You have slimmed down a lot since last

bajar de peso
spring break.

slip up

You must not slip up again.

cometer un error

slow down

You're going to fast. Please slow down.

reducir la velocidad

smash into

The car smashed into the side of a bus.

chocar con, impactarse en algo

sober up

Some coffee definitely won't sober them

up.

desembriagarse

speak up

Please speak up. I nearly can't hear

you.

hablar en voz alta

speak up for

You can speak up for those who cannot

speak for themselves.

intervenir, abogar a favor de alguien

split up

We had to split the class up into two

classes.

separar, divider en

spread out

He told them to spread out and

continue their search.

desplegarse

stand around

Don't stand around. Get busy!

estar parado sin hacer nada

stand by

Stand by while I search for another

song.

esperar, estar al pendiente

stand in (for)

Sam is sick. Can you stand in for him?

reemplazar a alguien

10

stand up

She stood up and look across the room.

pararse

start off

When will we start off?

empezar, comenzar

start out

We will start out whenever you are

ready.

comenzar, empezar

start over

Sorry, I guess I messed this up, so can I

start over?

empezar de nuevo

start up

Start your car up and let's go.

arancar

stay over

Can my friend stay over, please?

pasar la noche

steal away

She stealed away while he was refilling

her coffee.

escabullirse

step aside

Step aside, please. You're in my way.

hacerse a un lado

step up

Traffic has stepped up since the road

was fixed.

aumentar, incrementar

stick together

We must stick together.

mantenerse unidos

stop by

Please stop by before you go on

vacation.

pasar, visitar

stop in

Can't you just stop in for a few minutes? pasar, visitar por un ratito

stop over

We stopped over in Chicago for two

nights.

pasar la noche

storm in(to)

He stormed into the room, shouting

and yelling.

entrar corriendo

storm out (of)

He got angry and stormed out of the

meeting.

salir corriendo

straighten out

(1) We have to straighten this mess

out.
(2) They straightened out the line of
people.

(1) ordenar, corregir

(2) enderezar

straighten up

My room is a total mess. I better

straighten it up right away.

recoger, ordenar

strip down

The doctor told me to strip down for the

quitarse la ropa, desnudarse
examination.

sum up

Can you sum up the arguments of this

essay?

resumir

swell up

I bumped my ankle and it swelled up.

hincharse

switch off

I forgot to switch the TV off before I

went to bed.

apagar

switch on

Can someone switch the light on,

please?

encender, prender

take away

The police took her daughter away.

quitar

take apart

Don't take my TV apart.

desarmar, descomponer

take in

Don't take strangers in.

dejar entrar

take off

(1) When does your plane take off?

(2) Sorry, I have to take off now.
(3) Take your coat off, please.

(1) salir
(2) irse
(3) quitarse

take over

If you take over, you will be in charge.

asumir el poder

11

talk back (to)

Don't ever talk back to her.

contradecir

talk out

Let's just talk this matter out.

discutir algo a fondo

team up (with)

I don't want to team up with him.

juntarse en equipo

tear off (of)

She tore off the label of the bottle.

arrancar algo

tell off

I should have told him off.

regaar

tell on

I'm going to call your father and tell on

you.

avisar, delatar a alguien, descubrir

algo a alguien

think back (to)

Try and think back to the morning of

June 5.

recordar

think over

I needed a few minutes to think it over.

pensar, reflexionar

think through

First, let me think this through and I'll

call you tomorrow first in the morning.

reflexionar sobre algo a fondo

think of

I quickly had to think of something.

pensar en algo

think up

I'll think something up.

inventar

throw up

I was so nauseous I almost had to throw

vomitar
up.

tidy up

Your room looks like a pig sty. You better

recoger, ordenar
tidy it up now.

tool up

I needed to tool up to do the job.

equiparse

trick into

He tried to trick her into doing it his

way.

engaar a alg. para que haga algo,

manipular

try out

Let's try out this candy store.

probar

turn
around/about

The car turned around and went the

other way.

dar la vuelta y regresar

turn down

(1) He turned his collar down, when he

entered her house.
(2) Turn the music down a little, will
you?
(3) Our proposal was turned down.

turn in

I need some sleep. I'm going to turn in

now.

ir a dormir, ir a la cama

turn in(to)

Turn in for some gas.

voltear

turn off

Could you please turn the radio off?

apagar

turn on

Don't forget to turn on the lights when

the sun goes down.

encender, prender

turn up

(1) remangar algo

(1) Turn your cuffs up, please.
(2) pasar, suceder
(2) Something always turns up.
(3) Apparently, new evidence has turned (3) aparecer
up.

(1) doblar hacia abajo

(2) bajar
(3) rechazar

U
use up

You can use it up. I have more of it.

gastar, agotar, consumer algo

They voted him down.

ganar en una votacin

Wake up! We have hit the road.

despertarse

V
vote down
W
wake up

12

walk off

They didn't even say good-bye. They just

irse sin despedirse
walked off.

walk out (on)

My sister walked out on Fred because

she was fed up with him.

dejar a alguien

watch over

Can you watch over the kids while

we're gone.

quidar

watch out (for)

Watch out for the snakes in the bushes. estar atento, estar cuidadoso

wear out

After weeks of learning for this stupid

test, I'm finally worn out.

estar exhausto

wipe off (of)

Don't use your sleeve to wipe the ice

cream off of your hand.

limpiar

work out

(1) Everything will work out in the end.

(2) She needs to work out more often.

(1) salir bien, tener xito

(2) entrenar

work over

They really worked him over.

golpear a alguien

write away for

I wrote away for a book on poetry.

pedir por escrito

The pain caused me to yell out.

gritar

zip up

I had better zip my jacket up.

cerrar el zipper

zoom in (on)

She zoomed in on this issue.

concentrarse en

Y
yell out
Z

13