Phrasal verbs combine a verb with a small word (up, out, off) to create new meanings. Below you’ll find each one with a clear definition, a natural example sentence, and notes on separability. Browse, compare, and try them out in your own sentences.
| Phrasal Verb | Meaning | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| touch at | Make a brief stop at a port | Our ship touched at Cape Town for a few hours. |
| touch down | Land; come to ground | The crowd roared as the spacecraft touched down safely. |
| touch in | Add small finishing marks or details | The painting’s nearly done—he’s touching in a few highlights. |
| touch off | Set off an explosion | A gas build-up touched off a series of blasts. |
| touch off | Trigger a reaction or process | The book touched off a storm of controversy. |
| touch on | Mention briefly in speech or writing | In his lecture, he touched on the author’s early life. |
| touch up | Make minor improvements | She touched up her makeup before the meeting. |
| try for | Attempt to achieve | They tried hard for an equalizer in the second half. |
| try on | Put clothing on to check fit | She tried it on, but it didn’t fit. |
| try out | Take part in a competitive test | She tried out for the supporting role in the comedy. |
| try out | Test to see if you like it | At the seaside, be sure to try out the local seafood. |
| turn against | Become hostile or opposed to | His supporters turned against him after he defected. |
| turn around | Make an ailing venture successful | A new GM was hired to turn around the company. |
| turn away | Refuse entry | Visitors were turned away at closing time. |
| turn away | Drive potential customers off | Slow service turned away would-be diners. |
| turn away | Look in another direction | I turned away when I saw the blood. |
| turn back | Go back the way you came | The sea was too rough—we decided to turn back. |
| turn down | Reject | She turned down his proposal for the tenth time. |
| turn down | Reduce (volume/heat/etc.) | Please turn down the radio. |
| turn in | Hand over to an authority | Someone turned my lost passport in to the police. |
| turn in | Go to bed | It’s late—we should turn in. |
| turn in | Inform on | A gang member turned the leader in to the police. |
| turn in | Produce/record (a result) | The startup is expected to turn in a profit this quarter. |
| turn in | Submit | He was forced to turn in his resignation letter. |
| turn into | Change one thing into another | The magician turned a carrot into a rabbit. |
| turn into | Transform a place | The fishing village has been turned into a resort. |
| turn off | Repel; cause dislike | His arrogance really turned her off. |
| turn off | Leave one road for another | We turned off the highway onto a bumpy track. |
| turn off | Stop something operating | Turn off the tap clockwise. |
| turn on | Excite or be excited (often sexually) | Long hair really turns him on. |
| turn on | Start or activate | It’s getting dark—turn on your headlights. |
| turn on | Attack suddenly | Why turn on him when he had nothing to do with it? |
| turn out | Prove to be; be revealed | It turned out the butler did it. |
| turn out | Gather for an event | About ten thousand turned out for the fireworks. |
| turn out | Be discovered as | The diamond thief turned out to be the inspector. |
| turn out | Attend; participate | This district turns out the most voters in the country. |
| turn out | Produce by manufacturing | With the new machine, they can turn out 500 packs an hour. |
| turn out | Result in a particular way | We doubted his story, but it turned out true. |
| turn over | Transfer to another authority/person | The abandoned baby was turned over to social services. |
| turn over | Generate revenue | His new business is turning over several thousand a month. |
| turn over | Change TV channel | If you’re not watching, I’m turning over to the other channel. |
| turn over | Ponder; think about | He lay awake turning the idea over in his mind. |
| turn to | Seek help or relief from | She turned to drugs to cope with her depression. |
| turn to | Open a page in a book | Turn to page 123—note the missing next page. |
| turn to | Go to someone for advice/support | She turned to counseling for help. |
| turn up | Appear unexpectedly | Weeks after going missing, she turned up at the press office. |
| turn up | Be found | Police searched the area but turned up no clues. |
| turn up | Attend; arrive | Fewer than half the invited guests turned up. |
| turn up | Happen unexpectedly | He missed the meeting—something urgent turned up. |
| turn up | Increase level (heat/sound/light) | Don’t turn up the TV; I’m trying to nap. |
