Phrasal Verb

Meaning

Example Sentence

save on

To not use something so as to avoid paying for it.

We don’t turn on a light if we don’t need it to save on electricity.

save up

To set aside money for future use.

We are trying to save up for our overseas holiday.

scare away

To frighten someone away.

A supposedly haunted scene at the park scared many people away from the place.

To keep something away by frightening them

The farmer set up big scarecrows to scare birds away.

scare into

To frighten or threaten someone into doing something.

The cult leader scared the members into following his instructions.

scare off

To make someone feel less confident or sure about doing something.

The new tax scares off many would-be investors.

scare up

To obtain something in spite of difficulties.

We have to scare up something to eat the night before someone come to our rescue.

scrape along

To earn just enough money to live on.

With my first job, I had to scrape along on my small weekly wage.

scrape by

To get by.

She lost her husband, so the family had to scrape by on her meager earnings.  

scrape in

To just make it.

He scraped in by a slim majority to become president of the club.

scrape through

To just pass or achieve something.

I just scraped through my exams.  

scrape up

To bring together with difficulty a number of or quantity of something.

She scraped up enough money to pay off her father’s gambling debts.

see about

To deal with.

One of us has to see about getting enough drinks for the party.

To attend to.

Let the doctor see about the pain on your leg instead of just worrying about it.

see after

To take care of).

He asked me to see after his hamsters while he is overseas.

see in

To see a quality in something.

The movie was supposed to be funny, but we couldn’t see the humour in it.

To see a quality in someone.

We can see an outgoing personality in him.

To see something in someone.

Her parents couldn’t understand what she saw in him.

see of

To spend time socially together with someone.

We have seen very little of each other since her transfer to the headquarters in the city.

see off

To bid someone farewell at a particular place such as airport, railway station, etc.

He was very happy see his mother-in-law off at the airport.

To send an uninvited person away.

His job is to see off unwelcome intruders.

see out

To accompany a guest to the door when he/she is leaving.

There were no one to see us out when we left the office.

To remain until the end of an event, etc.

We saw out the entire firework display in spite of the light drizzle.

see through

To get on with a task until it is completed.

They are determined to see the whole project through.

To support someone through a difficult time.

I need some money to see me through until I get another job.

To realize the truth of something that is deceiving.

We saw through his cunning act almost immediately.

see to

To attend to.

When I was staying with them, her parents saw to all my needs.

To deal with.

The local council intends to see to it that no one gets away with littering the beach with bottles and cans.

sell off

To raise money to meet one’s need.

He had to sell off his antique furniture to pay for his medical treatment.

To sell something at an auctioned price.

He sold off his luxury yacht to the highest bidder.

sell out

To sell one’s supply of goods or materials.

They have sold out of all the units of the new computer model.

To sell an entire stock of something.

The latest batch of the book is completely sold out.

To betray someone.

Fellow gang members had sold him out.

To abandon one’s principles.

He sold out to the other side.

sell up

To sell all of one’s possessions.

The family sold up and settled permanently in another country.

send away

To send someone to another place.

She was sent away to live with her grandparents in her early teens.

send back

To return to the sender.

The letter was delivered to a wrong address and was sent back to the post office.

send down

To imprison someone.

He was not sent down as he was found innocent of the crime.

To expel.

The two students were sent down from their university for unacceptable behavior.

send for

To request to come.

Someone has already sent for an ambulance for the accident victim.

To request or order by post.

She sent for a free sample of the shampoo as advertised.

send in

To involve someone in a difficult situation.

When negotiation with the hostage-takers failed, the police sent in the snipers.

send off

To compel someone, especially a player to leave the field for violation of the rules.

He was sent off for kicking another player’s backside.

To cause something to be delivered by post.

We sent off a letter of housing application and are still waiting for a reply.

To move someone to another place.

The mother sends the kids off to school each morning.

send on

To deliver something to someone so that they can deal with it.

The report is sent on to the Attorney General for further action.

serve out

To spend a period in prison.

He was released without having to serve out the full sentence because of good behavior.

To present food or drink to each of the people or guests present.

She served out the homemade apple pie.