So, you've reached B2 (upper intermediate) English and it suddenly 'hits you' ('dawns on you,' 'strikes you') that you've never used a phrasal verb in your life!
Well well well. What would Shakespeare say?
Phrasal verbs are short-cuts to meaning that you should be using - especially when speaking to native speakers. I would personally avoid using them with intermediate level and below speakers in order to avoid confusion, but in general conversation with native speakers they will be scattered about the place, so you should be learning them....NOW.
But here lies the problem. Which ones are the most useful? Which ones have more than one meaning?
Luckily for us, Gardner and Davis (2007) analysed a 100,000,000 word English language corpus to identify the most frequently used phrasal verbs.
Here are the results, with definitions and example sentences for each. I will post 20 more each week as there are more than 100, so keep an eye out! Remember, practise practise :-)
Go on - to continue or start
Carry out - to do or complete something
Set up - to start an organisation; to arrange; to make equipment ready
Pick up - to lift something; to take someone in a car; to learn something new
Go back - to return; to have existed since
We’re going back home
It goes back a long time
Come back - to return; to remember again; to be fashionable again
Go out - to leave your home, to go and enjoy, to be romantically involved
Point out - to indicate/show/tell (someone/where/thing)
Find out - to discover a piece of information
Come up - to approach someone; to become available; to arise (a problem)
She came up to me
A job has come up
A problem came up
Make up - to invent an explanation, story, or poem; to constitute; to become friends again
Take over - to take control of something
Come out - to become available; to be removed; to become known
Come on - to progress or improve; to start functioning; to hurry someone; to appear on tv/radio/stage
My studies are coming on very well thank you
The lights came on at 9pm
Come on slowcoach let’s go!
He came on in the middle of the show
Come in - to enter; to go to your place of work; to be useful
Go down - to reach a lower point; to decrease
The sun goes down at 7pm
Prices must go down soon
Work out - to solve a problem; to do physical exercise; to understand someone
Can you work this math problem out?
I’m going to work out at the gym now
I can’t work him out at all
Set out - to begin a journey; to explain something clearly
Take up - to start a new hobby; to fill a space
Get back - to return from; to receive something given/lost/stolen; to get revenge
We need to get back home right now
He borrowed a t-shirt and I need to get it back soon
I want to get back at her for what she did