Idiom

Meaning

Example Sentence

act up

to misbehave

“The toddlers have been acting up lately.”

blow up

to explode; to detonate or make explode

“Demolition workers blew up an old building to make room for a new mall.”

bring up

to mention (in conversation)

“It’s a good idea to bring up your career goals during a job interview.”

come up

to happen (usually unexpectedly)

“Something came up yesterday, so I was unable to attend the event.”

give up

to stop (doing something); to quit

“Leah is trying to give up smoking.”

hang up

to end a phone call

“Always hang up if a telemarketer tries to sell you something.”

make up

“make up” has two unrelated meanings: to create (something) through one’s imagination, or to come to terms or settle an argument (with someone)

“I made up a fairy tale to tell my children at bedtime.”

“The siblings finally made up after two days of fighting.”

mix up

“mix up” has two similar meanings: to confuse, or to or assemble something out of order

“I always mix up the twins when I see them—one of these days I’ll learn to tell them apart.”

“Someone must have mixed up the photo albums, because these pictures are all out of order.”

show up

to come, arrive, or appear

“The groom waited all day, but the bride never showed up.”

shut up

to stop talking; to be quiet

“If you don’t shut up, I’m leaving!”

throw up

to vomit

“The girl became sick and threw up several times.”

turn up

to (re)appear; to be found

“I’m sure your diary will turn up somewhere.”

Idiom

Meaning

Example Sentence

break down

“break down” has two unrelated meanings: to stop functioning due to a mechanical failure, or to start crying or become overwhelmingly emotional (about something)

“My car broke down on the way here, so I had to walk the rest of the way.”

“The boy broke down when he realized he’d failed the exam.”

die down

to lessen in intensity or become weaker

“The wind has died down a bit.”

let down

to disappoint

“I feel like I’ve let down my parents.”

pipe down

to be less loud

“Pipe down or I’m sending you to your room!”

play down

to make something seem less important than it truly is

“Successful people often play down their achievements to avoid sounding arrogant.”

step down

to resign or retire from a position

“A prominent political figure recently stepped down in response to a scandal.”

turn down

to reject

“She has turned down many marriage proposals.”

wind down

to relax

“Let’s wind down with some popcorn and a movie.”

Idiom

Meaning

Example Sentence

catch up on

to get informed about something; to get up to date with something

“Helen plans to catch up on her reading tonight.”

count on

to rely or depend on

“I can always count on you to lend me a hand when I need it most.”

drag on

to continue for a long time and become boring or tedious

“The man’s speech dragged on for well over an hour.”

go on

to continue

“It might seem like the end of the world, but life still goes on after setbacks like this.”

grow on

to eventually become liked by

“This new flavor of ice cream has really grown on me.”

hang on

to wait; to be patient

“Could you hang on a moment?”

move on

to stop focusing on the past and continue with one’s life

“Gerald struggled to move on after losing the tennis match.”

pick on

to tease; to make fun of or bully

“You shouldn’t pick on your little brother.”

tell on

to report someone else’s wrongdoing to a person of authority

“She went to the teacher to tell on her friend.”

try on

to put on a garment or piece of clothing to see how it fits

“I’d like to try on this shirt, please.”

Idiom

Meaning

Example Sentence

back off

to withdraw or retreat

“Some salespeople don’t know when to back off.”

brush off

to ignore something; to pretend something important is not important

“You can’t just brush off what happened between you two.”

call off

to cancel

“Employees were forced to call off the strike.”

drop off

to take to and deposit at some location

“Dustin usually drops off his shirts at the dry cleaner before work.”

kick off

to begin

“They say the festival should kick off around noon.”

lay off

to terminate employees

“Oil companies have had to lay off many workers.”

nod off

to doze; to fall asleep

“I always nod off during long ceremonies.”

pull off

to successfully complete a difficult task

“Penny pulled off the challenging dance routine.”

show off

“show off” has two distinct meanings: to display something one is proud of, or to act as if one is superior to others

“Parents love to show off their children’s artwork.”

“That girl is always showing off.”

take off

“take off” has two related but distinct meanings: to become successful or popular (usually for businesses), or to depart or go into the air (e.g., an airplane)

“My online business really took off after it was mentioned on the news.”

“The plane took off an hour late.”

wear off

to lose effectiveness; to stop having an effect

“I think the pain medicine is starting to wear off.”

Idiom

Meaning

Example Sentence

come down with

to become sick; to fall ill

“Dimitri came down with a terrible cold.”

come up with

to think of, suggest, or develop (an idea)

“Scientists are trying to come up with a solution to climate change.”

do away with

to stop or abolish; to get rid of

“Some people want to do away with taxes.”

get along with

to have a good or friendly relationship with someone

“They don’t seem to get along with each other.”

get away with

to avoid punishment for a wrongdoing

“The criminals didn’t get away with the robbery.”

go through with

to undertake or complete (usually an undesirable or difficult action)

“Will your family go through with the move to Texas?”

keep up with

to stay up to date; to stay informed about

“I can’t keep up with celebrity gossip.”

put up with

to tolerate

“She shouldn’t put up with her brother’s pranks anymore.”

Idiom

Meaning

Example Sentence

come across

to find something unexpectedly; to meet or see someone unexpectedly

“He came across a bizarre inscription on the base of the statue.”

“You might come across some of my relatives if you move to London.”

come to

to regain consciousness

“Minutes passed before he came to.”

get at

to mean or to express

“What is he trying to get at?”

get by

to barely manage to deal with a problem or extreme situation

“The hiker managed to get by on a single bottle of water.”

get over

to recover from or successfully deal with something (usually an illness or difficult situation)

“She’s finally getting over her cold.”

“He can’t get over his self-esteem issues.”

go through

to experience (something difficult)

“Dad is going through a mid-life crisis.”

hang out

to socialize or get together (with someone)

“Do you want to hang out this weekend?”

root for

to cheer for someone; to support or take sides with someone

“You’d better root for me if I make it to the semi-finals.”

sink in

to become clearly and gradually understood

“He let the college’s rejection sink in before deciding to reapply the following year.”

stick around

to wait, stay, or remain (in a place)

“Is she sticking around for the next act?”

tag along

to accompany

“My little sister likes to tag along when I go out with my friends.”