Virtuous English AcademyAdvanced Phrasal Verbs — C1 English Vocabulary
This C1 vocabulary list gathers 60 advanced English words about advanced phrasal verbs — tricky multi-word verbs of fluency. Every word comes with a simple definition, its British-English pronunciation and a natural example sentence, so you learn each one in real context. When you are ready, open the flashcards to practise and remember them for good.
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account for/əˈkaʊnt fɔː/
To explain the reason for something.
“Costs account for half the price.”
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back down/ˌbæk ˈdaʊn/
To withdraw a claim or demand.
“Neither side will back down.”
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bank on/ˈbæŋk ɒn/
To rely on something happening.
“Do not bank on good weather.”
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brush up on/ˌbrʌʃ ˈʌp ɒn/
To improve a skill you learned before.
“I must brush up on my French.”
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carry out/ˌkær.i ˈaʊt/
To perform or complete a task.
“They carry out repairs daily.”
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come across/ˌkʌm əˈkrɒs/
To find something by chance.
“You often come across bargains here.”
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come up with/ˌkʌm ˈʌp wɪð/
To think of an idea or plan.
“We must come up with a plan.”
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crack down on/ˌkræk ˈdaʊn ɒn/
To take strong action against something.
“Police crack down on speeding.”
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cut back on/ˌkʌt ˈbæk ɒn/
To reduce the amount of something.
“We must cut back on sugar.”
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do away with/ˌduː əˈweɪ wɪð/
To get rid of something.
“They want to do away with the rule.”
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draw up/ˌdrɔː ˈʌp/
To prepare a written document.
“Lawyers draw up the contract.”
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drum up/ˌdrʌm ˈʌp/
To try to gain support or interest.
“They drum up support online.”
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fall back on/ˌfɔːl ˈbæk ɒn/
To use something as a backup when needed.
“She can fall back on savings.”
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fall through/ˌfɔːl ˈθruː/
To fail to happen as planned.
“The deal may fall through.”
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figure out/ˌfɪɡ.ər ˈaʊt/
To work out or understand something.
“I cannot figure out the code.”
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get around to/ɡet əˈraʊnd tuː/
To finally do something after delay.
“I never get around to it.”
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give in to/ˌɡɪv ˈɪn tuː/
To stop resisting something.
“Do not give in to pressure.”
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go through with/ˌɡəʊ ˈθruː wɪð/
To do something difficult as planned.
“He could not go through with it.”
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iron out/ˌaɪən ˈaʊt/
To solve small problems or difficulties.
“We need to iron out the details.”
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keep up with/ˌkiːp ˈʌp wɪð/
To move or progress at the same rate.
“I cannot keep up with the news.”
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live up to/ˌlɪv ˈʌp tuː/
To be as good as expected.
“The film did not live up to the hype.”
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look down on/ˌlʊk ˈdaʊn ɒn/
To think you are better than someone.
“Do not look down on others.”
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look forward to/ˌlʊk ˈfɔː.wəd tuː/
To feel happy about a future event.
“We look forward to your visit.”
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look into/ˈlʊk ˌɪn.tuː/
To investigate something.
“Police will look into the matter.”
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make up for/ˌmeɪk ˈʌp fɔː/
To do something to correct a fault.
“Nothing can make up for the loss.”
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opt for/ˈɒpt fɔː/
To choose one thing over another.
“Many opt for the cheaper plan.”
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pin down/ˌpɪn ˈdaʊn/
To force someone to give exact details.
“It is hard to pin down the cause.”
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point out/ˌpɔɪnt ˈaʊt/
To draw attention to a fact.
“Critics point out the flaws.”
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put up with/ˌpʊt ˈʌp wɪð/
To tolerate something unpleasant.
“I will not put up with this.”
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rule out/ˌruːl ˈaʊt/
To decide that something is not possible.
“We cannot rule out a strike.”
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run into/ˈrʌn ˌɪn.tuː/
To meet someone by chance, or hit trouble.
“I often run into old friends.”
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set out/ˌset ˈaʊt/
To begin a task with a clear aim.
“They set out to break the record.”
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sort out/ˌsɔːt ˈaʊt/
To organise or solve something.
“We must sort out the mess.”
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stand for/ˈstænd fɔː/
To represent or mean something.
“What does the sign stand for?”
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stand out/ˌstænd ˈaʊt/
To be clearly noticeable.
“Her work tends to stand out.”
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take on/ˌteɪk ˈɒn/
To accept a task or responsibility.
“They take on new staff each year.”
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take up/ˌteɪk ˈʌp/
To start a new hobby or activity.
“He wants to take up painting.”
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turn down/ˌtɜːn ˈdaʊn/
To refuse an offer or request.
“She had to turn down the offer.”
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weigh up/ˌweɪ ˈʌp/
To consider something carefully.
“Let us weigh up the options.”
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work out/ˌwɜːk ˈaʊt/
To solve, or to exercise.
“Things will work out fine.”
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branch out/ˌbrɑːntʃ ˈaʊt/
To start doing something new.
“The firm wants to branch out.”
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bring about/ˌbrɪŋ əˈbaʊt/
To cause something to happen.
“Reforms can bring about change.”
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clamp down on/ˌklæmp ˈdaʊn ɒn/
To act strictly to stop something.
“They clamp down on fraud.”
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dwell on/ˈdwel ɒn/
To think or speak about something too much.
“Do not dwell on the past.”
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embark on/ɪmˈbɑːk ɒn/
To begin an important new project.
“They embark on a new project.”
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fend off/ˌfend ˈɒf/
To defend yourself against something.
“She had to fend off questions.”
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gloss over/ˌɡlɒs ˈəʊ.və/
To avoid dealing with something properly.
“He tends to gloss over details.”
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hammer out/ˌhæm.ər ˈaʊt/
To reach an agreement after much effort.
“They hammer out a deal.”
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hinge on/ˈhɪndʒ ɒn/
To depend entirely on something.
“Success may hinge on timing.”
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mull over/ˌmʌl ˈəʊ.və/
To think about something carefully.
“Let me mull over the idea.”
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phase out/ˌfeɪz ˈaʊt/
To stop using something gradually.
“They will phase out the model.”
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play down/ˌpleɪ ˈdaʊn/
To make something seem less important.
“Officials play down the risk.”
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ramp up/ˌræmp ˈʌp/
To increase something.
“Factories ramp up production.”
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shrug off/ˌʃrʌɡ ˈɒf/
To treat something as unimportant.
“He tends to shrug off criticism.”
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single out/ˌsɪŋ.ɡəl ˈaʊt/
To choose one person or thing from a group.
“Do not single out one person.”
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stem from/ˈstem frɒm/
To be caused by something.
“Problems stem from poor planning.”
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tide over/ˌtaɪd ˈəʊ.və/
To help someone through a hard time.
“A small loan can tide over a business.”
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usher in/ˌʌʃ.ər ˈɪn/
To mark the start of something new.
“The vote may usher in change.”
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water down/ˌwɔː.tə ˈdaʊn/
To make something weaker or less strong.
“They water down the proposal.”
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zero in on/ˌzɪə.rəʊ ˈɪn ɒn/
To focus attention closely on something.
“Detectives zero in on a suspect.”
Using advanced phrasal verbs words in English
Phrasal verbs are usually taught as vocabulary, but the thing that actually stops learners using them confidently is grammar: whether the two parts can be separated, and where a pronoun object has to go. This page sets out those rules, which are more systematic than they look, and challenges the common belief that phrasal verbs are always too informal for academic writing.
What to watch out for
Separable verbs must split around a pronoun
Carry out is separable: carry out the plan and carry the plan out are both fine. But with a pronoun object, splitting becomes compulsory: carry it out is correct and carry out it is not. Draw up, drum up and cut back behave the same way. This pronoun rule is the single most reliable thing to know about phrasal verbs.
Inseparable verbs never split, and three-part verbs never do
Come across, bank on and fall back on are inseparable: I came across it, never I came it across. Every three-part phrasal verb is inseparable, which is a genuinely useful shortcut — cut back on, come up with, crack down on, brush up on, do away with all keep their parts together and put the object at the end.
Not all phrasal verbs are informal
It is often said that academic writing prefers Latinate single words — investigate over look into. That is broadly true, but several phrasal verbs are entirely neutral and appear constantly in formal prose: carry out research, account for a difference, result in, consist of, rely on. The register test is per verb, not for the category as a whole.
Words learners mix up
Once the separation rules are secure, the difficulty is semantic: several of these describe the same rough action and differ on how honest it is. These three clusters are where a wrong choice makes an accusation you did not intend.
Making something smaller — or making it disappear
| Word | What it actually means | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| cut back on | Reduces the amount of something. Neutral and quantitative, and the thing continues. | The council cut back on street lighting. |
| phase out | Removes something gradually to a plan, so that it ends. Separable, and the endpoint is zero. | Older models will be phased out by 2030. |
| water down | Weakens a proposal so it no longer does what it was meant to. Always critical. | The bill was watered down to secure votes. |
| play down | Makes something seem less important than it is. Nothing changes but the presentation. | Ministers played down the shortfall. |
| do away with | Abolishes it outright. Informal, three-part, and inseparable. | They did away with the entrance exam. |
The pair worth separating is water down against play down: the first changes the thing, the second changes only the account of it. Both accuse; cut back on and phase out do not. Their opposite is ramp up — to increase sharply and deliberately.
Dealing with a difficulty, honestly or otherwise
| Word | What it actually means | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| iron out | Removes remaining small problems from something that basically works. Separable. | A few details still to iron out. |
| hammer out | Produces an agreement through long, difficult negotiation. The effort is the point. | They hammered out a deal at four in the morning. |
| sort out | The general British verb for resolving or organising anything. Informal and extremely common. | I will sort out the paperwork. |
| gloss over | Passes quickly over a problem to avoid dealing with it. Inseparable, and always a criticism. | The report glosses over the cost. |
| shrug off | Dismisses something as unimportant — sometimes admirable resilience, sometimes negligence. | She shrugged off the criticism and carried on. |
Iron out assumes the problems are minor; hammer out assumes they were not. And gloss over is the one to handle carefully in writing about real people — it alleges evasion, where did not address merely reports an absence.
Thinking about it
| Word | What it actually means | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| mull over | Considers slowly and without pressure, over time. Separable. | Let me mull it over for a few days. |
| weigh up | Compares the advantages and disadvantages before deciding. The metaphor is a balance. | They weighed up the risks carefully. |
| dwell on | Keeps returning to something, usually unhelpfully. Inseparable, and mildly critical. | There is no point dwelling on the mistake. |
| zero in on | Narrows attention sharply onto one thing. Three-part and inseparable. | Investigators zeroed in on the second account. |
| pin down | Establishes something precisely that has been vague — or gets a firm commitment from a person. | We cannot pin down the exact date. |
Only dwell on carries a judgement, which is why it is nearly always in a negative frame: don’t dwell on it. Note that pin down works on both facts and people, and with a person it means extracting a straight answer.
Collocations that sound natural
A phrasal verb is far easier to remember with its usual object than on its own, because most of them are strongly attached to a handful of nouns. These are the pairings that actually occur in the press and in reports.
draw up
draw up a contractdraw up plansdraw up a shortlistdraw up a list
Always documents. Separable, and formal enough for a report — one of the phrasal verbs that survives in professional writing.
carry out
carry out researchcarry out an inspectioncarry out repairscarry out an order
The workhorse of academic and official English, and fully neutral in register despite being a phrasal verb.
clamp down on
clamp down on fraudclamp down on speedinga clampdown on
Three-part and inseparable. Crack down on is a near-twin; both are journalistic and both take an activity, never a person.
stem from
stem from a misunderstandingstem from povertyproblems stemming from
Inseparable, and it means to originate in. Formal, and common in academic prose where be caused by would be flatter.
hinge on
hinge on the outcomehinge on a single questioneverything hinges on
Inseparable. It means to depend entirely on, and the subject is usually an abstract thing like a case, a decision or a plan.
usher in
usher in a new erausher in changesusher in a period of
Formal and slightly grand: to mark the start of something significant. Its object is almost always a period or a change.
Formal, neutral or informal?
The claim that phrasal verbs are informal is too blunt. Some are standard in a journal article, some belong only to speech, and a few differ between British and American English in ways that will be noticed.
- account for / carry out / stem fromFormal · safe in essaysFully neutral and common in academic writing. There is no reason to replace account for with explain in an essay — the phrasal verb is idiomatic and precise, and account for also means to constitute a proportion: women account for 60% of the sample.
- figure out vs work outAmerican vs BritishSame meaning. Work out is the British default; figure out is American and now widely used in Britain too, but in formal British writing work out or determine reads more naturally.
- sort outInformal · BritishEnormously common in British speech and email, and it covers resolving, organising and repairing. Too vague for a formal report, where you name the actual action.
- put up withInformalThree-part and inseparable. The formal single-word equivalent is tolerate, and in an essay that is the better choice.
- zero in onAmerican originFrom gunnery. Fully understood in Britain but still faintly American; the neutral alternatives are focus on and narrow down to.
- gloss over / play down / water downCriticalAll three allege that somebody misrepresented something. They are the right words when that is your claim, and the wrong ones when you simply mean an issue received little attention.
- tide overIdiomaticTo help someone through a difficult period until things improve: a loan to tide us over. Separable, and the object is a person, not the problem.
- brush up onNeutral · learningTo revise a skill you once had. Three-part, inseparable, and specific to knowledge you are recovering rather than acquiring — you cannot brush up on something you never knew.
Sentences to try
Four frames testing the separation rules. Replace each object with a pronoun and see what has to move.
- The team carried out the survey in three regions.
- She came across the reference entirely by chance.
- We need to cut back on non-essential spending.
- The plans fell through at the last minute.
Questions about advanced phrasal verbs vocabulary
How do I know whether a phrasal verb can be separated?
There is no rule that predicts it from the words, so separability has to be learned with each verb — but two facts help enormously. First, every three-part phrasal verb is inseparable: come up with, cut back on, crack down on, do away with all keep their parts together. Second, when a separable verb takes a pronoun object, the split is compulsory: carry it out, never carry out it. So if you are unsure, testing the sentence with a pronoun will usually reveal which type you are dealing with.
Can I use phrasal verbs in academic writing?
Some of them, yes — the blanket advice to avoid them is too crude. Academic English does prefer single Latinate verbs in many places, so investigate is more usual than look into and tolerate than put up with. But a substantial group of phrasal verbs is fully neutral and appears throughout the most formal writing: carry out an experiment, account for a variance, result in, consist of, rely on, refer to. The test applies to individual verbs rather than to the category.
Where does the object go in "come up with"?
At the end, always: She came up with a solution, She came up with it. Three-part phrasal verbs are inseparable without exception, so nothing can be inserted between the verb and its two particles. The same applies to cut back on expenses, crack down on fraud, brush up on your Spanish, fall back on savings and do away with the rule. This makes them easier than two-part verbs, where you have to know whether separation is permitted.