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 alguienask after Mr. Smith asked after John. preguntar por la salud de alguienask in He was asked in. inviter a entrarask over Yes, you can ask your friend over. invitar a la casaB

back off She was told to back off. retrodecerbe in Are your parents in? estar en casabe 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. disculparseblack out And then she just blacked out. desmayarseblame on Don't blame it on her. culparblow up The bomb might have blown up. explotarbreak awaybreak freebreak loose

At last, the hostage could break away from his captors. escaparse

break down Finally her sister broke down. colapsarsebreak off I didn't mean to break off anything. romper (se) relacionesbreak up Sue and Tim broke up last year. romper un relación, 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 himself up. formarse, aumentar, fortalecerse

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

C

call down The teacher called down all the students who were late. regañar

1

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. calmarsecarry on Please carry on with your homework. seguir

catch up (on) I need some time to catch up on that incident. ponerse al día

check out I will check it out. comprobar, verificarcheck 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? limpiarclean up Can you clean your room up a little? limpiar, ordenarclear 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.

(1) pasar a visita(2) obtener

come over Why don't you come over next weekend? pasar, venir, visitar

cool down / off(1) It began to cool off after the thunderstorm.(2) Cool down guys!

(1) enfriar

(2) calmarsecount (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, cortarD

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! ensuciardo in He tried to do his father in. acabar con, fastidiar, matardo 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

2

draw near As the time drew near,... acercarsedress down His father dressed him down again. regañardrink 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. seguir adelante

drop by I hope you guys can drop by our house some time. pasar, visitar

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. secarseE

ease off The storm eased off a little. calmarseeat up Eat up, and let's get going. comer todo

edge away The students laughed and edged away from him. alejarse lentamente

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, F

face up (to) You have to face up to challenges. enfrentarfall apart The whole thing falls apart. desmoronarsefall 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. abrocharsefeel for I really feel for you. tener lastimafight back (at) It's hard for him to fight back. responder, defendersefight down I fought down the anger. contenersefigure on I figure on the extra income. contar configure out I just can't figure her out. entender

fill in(1) I better fill the cracks in with something.(2) Would you fill in the form, please?

(1) rellenar

(2) llenar formatos

fill in (for) I will have to fill in for him till he gets back from his vacation. suplir, sustituir a alguien

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fill out Would you fill out the form, please? llenar

fill up(1) The hole filled up with water and had to be pumped.(2) We will fill up at the next gas station.

(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. encajarfix up Is my bike fixed up yet? arreglarfly in(to) When did you fly in? llegar en avión, volarfool around Stop fooling around. actuar como tontoG

gather up Let's gather our things up and leave. recogerget 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 aget back When will you get back? regresarget back at He will get back at him someday. vengarseget back to I will get back to you in a minute. regresarget by (on) She can't get by on that much money. arreglárselas conget 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 autobusget on How are you getting on? avanzar // subir el autobus

get on with(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.

(1) superarse(2) pasar encima de de

get through I tried calling you, but I couldn't get through. pasar, lograr conección

get up(1) Today I got up at 10 am.(2) We got up a team on very short notice.

(1) levantarse(2) levantar

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

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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! alejarsego back I'll never go back. regresargo in They went in after us. entrargo 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

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) pasar por

(2) revisar

(3) consumir

(4) sufrir

(5) ensayar

go under(1) I was afraid that our ship would go under.(2) The company went under.

(1) hundirse

(2) fracasar

go without I just cannot go without some candy from time to time. abstenerse de algo, pasar sin

H

hand down(1) The court has not yet handed down a ruling.(2) He will hand this down to his granddaughter.

(1) pronunciar algo, declarar

(2) heredar

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? colgarhappen (upon) I just happened upon her. ocurrir, pasarheal up My injury healed up in around no time. sanarhear out Hear me out, will you? I have more to escuchar sin interrumpir, dejar

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tell. hablarheat up How soon will lunch be heated up? calentarhelp 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, contraatacarhit on Tom was hitting on Mike's fiancée. ligar con alguienhit (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. esperar

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

I

idle away Don't idle the whole day away. desperciciar, perder el tiempoinsist (on) He also inisted on it. insistirinvite over Let's invite them over for dinner. invitarJ

jump in(to) I just jumped into the pool and had a refreshing swim. saltar

K

keep at I need to keep at this. seguir haciendokeep 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.

(1) quedarse con, dejar puesto

(2) seguir

keep out (of)(1) Keep out of this and mind your own business.(2) My door is closed. Keep out!

(1) mantenerse fuera

(2) no entrarknock off Knock it off! parar de hacer algoknock over Her reaction simply knocked me over. sorprenderL

lead up to(1) A narrow path leads up to his cabin.(2) She was just leading up to something when he interrupted.

(1) llevar(2) llegar a

leak out I hope that news does not leak out. filtrarselean over Lean over and pick it up yourself! agacharse

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leave out (of) Leave me out of it, please. dejar fuera, excluirleave up to They left this decision up to me. dejar algo a alguienlet 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 atrás, 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! cuidarlook 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. soltarseM

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

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?

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

(4) representar

(5) contentarse(6) inventar

march on Time marches on. pasar, avanzarmark down Pineapples are marked down again. bajar el preciomark 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

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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 her up? cambiar

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 ago. abrir

order in(to) The officer ordered me in. llamar a alguienP

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.

(1) recoger(2) levantar

(3) aumentar(4) aprender algo, captar algo

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. señalar

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

power up Okay, let's power up the engine and get going. encender, prender

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

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tomorrow?

put up with I just don't know why I even put up with you. aguantar a alguien, soportar alguien

Q

quiet down (1) Try to quiet him down.(2) Ask him to quiet down.

(1) callar alguien(2) callar, bajar el volumen

R

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 enride away / off I said good-bye and rode off. irse (en carro, etc.)

ride out Things are rough around here, but I think I can ride it out. sobrevivir

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 rápidamenteS

save up I'm saving up money for a new car. ahorar

see through(1) I knew what he was up to, because I saw through him.(2) I'll see this project through.

(1) no dejarse engañar por,

(2) apoyar, ayudar

sell out (to)(1) He refused to sell out to a large corporation.(2) He shouldn't have sold out to them.

(1) vender

(2) vender, traicionar

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send away for I had to send away for a new part. solicitarsend for He sent for his secretary. llamar, hacer venirsend over (to) She sent me over to her office. enviar alguien aset in The tournament set in early in January. llegarset 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. presumirsign 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 cruzadossit 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 spring break. bajar de peso

slip up You must not slip up again. cometer un errorslow 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

stand up She stood up and look across the room. pararse

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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. arancarstay 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 examination. quitarse la ropa, desnudarse

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

T

take away The police took her daughter away. quitartake apart Don't take my TV apart. desarmar, descomponertake 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 podertalk back (to) Don't ever talk back to her. contradecir

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talk out Let's just talk this matter out. discutir algo a fondoteam up (with) I don't want to team up with him. juntarse en equipotear off (of) She tore off the label of the bottle. arrancar algotell off I should have told him off. regañar

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 algothink up I'll think something up. inventar

throw up I was so nauseous I almost had to throw up. vomitar

tidy up Your room looks like a pig sty. You better tidy it up now. recoger, ordenar

tool up I needed to tool up to do the job. equiparse

trick into He tried to trick her into doing it his way.

engañar a alg. para que haga algo, manipular

try out Let's try out this candy store. probarturn 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.

(1) doblar hacia abajo

(2) bajar(3) rechazar

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. voltearturn 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) Turn your cuffs up, please.(2) Something always turns up.(3) Apparently, new evidence has turned up.

(1) remangar algo(2) pasar, suceder(3) aparecer

U

use up You can use it up. I have more of it. gastar, agotar, consumer algoV

vote down They voted him down. ganar en una votaciónW

wake up Wake up! We have hit the road. despertarsewalk off They didn't even say good-bye. They irse sin despedirse

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just 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 éxito(2) entrenar

work over They really worked him over. golpear a alguienwrite away for I wrote away for a book on poetry. pedir por escritoY

yell out The pain caused me to yell out. gritarZ

zip up I had better zip my jacket up. cerrar el zipperzoom in (on) She zoomed in on this issue. concentrarse en

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