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. |