1000 Phrasal Verbs In Context

1000 Phrasal Verbs In Context © Matt Errey 2007

14

1000 Phrasal Verbs in Context B b (5/7)

break out
A prisoner broke out of jail, but the police caught him quickly and put
him back inside.

break out

break out of sth

Mike broke out of his
usual routine and went
out dancing for a change.

✍ ^

break up
I was surprised when Katie and Simon broke up. They seemed so
happy together.

break up

The Beatles broke up after
making music together for
ten years.

✍  see also:^ split up^

break up
My son got in a fight at school today, and a teacher broke it up and kept
both boys in after school.

break up sth

break sth up

The police were sent to
break up the protest
against the government.

✍ 

break up
The signal on my phone was breaking up and I couldn’t hear what he
was saying.

break up

(be) breaking up

The phone’s signal was
getting weak so I said,
‘You’re breaking up.’

✍ 

brighten up
She looked sad, but she brightened up when her friends told her the
good news.

brighten up
brighten up sth/sb
brighten sth/sb up
Some posters and flowers
would really help to
brighten the office up.

✍  see also:^ cheer up, liven

up

bring about
The new government wants to bring about many changes in the way
the country is run.

bring about sth

bring sth about

The acts of a few greedy
people brought about the
Asian economic crisis.

✍  see also:^ bring on (for sth

bad only)

bring along
When we go to the beach, why don’t you bring some friends along as
well?

bring sb/sth along

bring along sb/sth

Would you like us to
bring along some food
and drinks?

✍ ^

bring
around

It took a long time to persuade Yoko to study English, but her friends

brought her around by saying she’d never get a good job without it.

bring sb around

After a lot of discussion,
we brought him around to
our point of view.

✍  see also:^ talk round, talk

into, win over

bring back
When she hears that song, it brings lots of memories back from when
she was young.

bring sth back

bring back sth

Reading my old diaries
brought back the feelings
I’d had many years ago.

✍ ^

bring down
Rebel fighters want to bring down the government and take control of
the country.

bring down sth/sb

bring sth/sb down

Huge street protests
eventually brought the
corrupt president down.

✍ ^