40 wordsSpeaking Part 1Speaking Part 2Speaking Part 3Updated 2026-05-20
Phrasal Verbs for IELTS Speaking — 40 Band-7+ Phrasal Verbs with Examples
IELTS examiners explicitly reward natural, idiomatic English in Speaking — and phrasal verbs are the single most efficient way to signal that. Replacing 'tolerate' with 'put up with', or 'investigate' with 'look into', shifts a candidate's register from textbook formal to native-fluent without the risk of misusing low-frequency academic vocabulary. The 40 phrasal verbs below were chosen because they collocate naturally with the topics most commonly tested in Speaking — work, study, family, technology, travel, health — and because they sound natural when spoken aloud (an important constraint for Speaking that does NOT apply to Writing Task 2, where some phrasal verbs are too colloquial).
IELTS prompts where this vocabulary fits
- Speaking Part 1: How did you take up your current hobby?
- Speaking Part 2: Describe a time you had to come up with a creative solution.
- Speaking Part 3: What kinds of pressures do young professionals have to put up with today?
Phrasal Verbs for Speaking vocabulary table
Each row gives the word, part of speech, plain-English definition, an IELTS-style example sentence, common collocations, and an optional band-7+ synonym you can swap in for variety.
| Word | POS | Definition | IELTS-style example | Collocations | Band-7+ synonym |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| take up | phr.v. | To start a new activity or hobby. | “I took up running about two years ago when I needed a way to handle work stress.” | take up a hobby, take up cycling | begin |
| give up | phr.v. | To stop doing or having something. | “I gave up coffee for a month earlier this year and I noticed I slept much better.” | give up smoking, give up easily | quit |
| look into | phr.v. | To investigate something carefully. | “Before booking the trip I looked into the visa requirements and the typical weather for that season.” | look into a problem, look into details | investigate |
| come up with | phr.v. | To produce or think of an idea or plan. | “Our team had to come up with three campaign concepts in just over a week.” | come up with an idea, come up with a solution | devise |
| put up with | phr.v. | To tolerate something or someone unpleasant. | “City residents have to put up with constant noise and frequent traffic delays.” | put up with stress, put up with the noise | tolerate |
| bring up | phr.v. | To raise a child; to mention a topic. | “Being brought up in a multilingual household made it much easier for me to pick up new languages later on.” | bring up a child, bring up a topic | raise / mention |
| pick up | phr.v. | To learn a skill, often informally; to collect. | “Most of my conversational Spanish I picked up while travelling rather than in class.” | pick up a language, pick up a skill | learn |
| catch up | phr.v. | To reach the same level as others, or to chat about recent events. | “After missing two weeks of lectures it took me a month to catch up on the reading.” | catch up on work, catch up with friends | get up to date |
| get along with | phr.v. | To have a friendly relationship with someone. | “I get along really well with my flatmates, which makes living together much easier.” | get along well, get along with colleagues | be on good terms with |
| look forward to | phr.v. | To anticipate something with pleasure. | “I'm looking forward to seeing my parents this weekend after several months apart.” | look forward to seeing, look forward to a trip | anticipate |
| run out of | phr.v. | To exhaust the supply of something. | “I almost ran out of time during the practice writing test, which taught me to plan more carefully.” | run out of time, run out of patience | exhaust |
| figure out | phr.v. | To understand or solve something. | “It took me a few days to figure out the underground map when I first moved to London.” | figure out a problem, figure out how to | work out |
| set up | phr.v. | To start or establish something, often a business or system. | “My cousin set up an online bakery during her final year of university and it's now her full-time job.” | set up a business, set up a meeting | establish |
| carry out | phr.v. | To perform or complete a task, especially a research-related one. | “The university carries out wide-ranging surveys on student wellbeing every two years.” | carry out research, carry out a study | conduct |
| go through | phr.v. | To experience something difficult; to read carefully. | “Most graduates go through a period of uncertainty in their first year of work.” | go through a difficult time, go through the details | endure / examine |
| sort out | phr.v. | To resolve a problem or organise something. | “It took me a couple of hours to sort out the paperwork for my visa renewal.” | sort out a problem, sort out the details | resolve |
| turn down | phr.v. | To reject an offer; to reduce volume. | “I turned down a graduate offer in another city because I wanted to stay closer to my family.” | turn down an offer, turn down the volume | reject |
| turn up | phr.v. | To arrive somewhere, often unexpectedly; to increase volume. | “Half the class turned up late because the train was delayed.” | turn up early, turn up to a party | arrive |
| work out | phr.v. | To exercise; to find a solution. | “I try to work out at least three times a week, even when work gets busy.” | work out at the gym, work out a plan | exercise / solve |
| calm down | phr.v. | To become less excited, angry, or worried. | “Taking ten deep breaths before I start speaking really helps me calm down.” | calm down quickly, calm down a friend | relax |
| cheer up | phr.v. | To become or make someone happier. | “Spending an evening with old school friends always cheers me up.” | cheer up a friend, cheer up quickly | lift spirits |
| fit in | phr.v. | To feel comfortable or accepted in a group. | “It took a couple of months to fit in at my new university because the cohort was already tight-knit.” | fit in socially, fit in at work | belong |
| stand out | phr.v. | To be noticeably different or better. | “A strong cover letter is what really makes graduate applications stand out from the pile.” | stand out from the crowd, stand out clearly | be distinctive |
| take in | phr.v. | To understand or absorb information; to deceive. | “There was so much information in the orientation talk that I struggled to take it all in.” | take in information, take in the view | absorb |
| come across | phr.v. | To meet or find by chance; to give a particular impression. | “I came across a brilliant podcast on history last week and I've been recommending it to everyone.” | come across as friendly, come across an article | encounter |
| look after | phr.v. | To take care of someone or something. | “My grandmother looked after me on weekends when both my parents were working.” | look after children, look after a pet | care for |
| grow up | phr.v. | To develop from a child into an adult. | “Growing up in a small town shaped the way I think about community even now.” | grow up in a city, grow up quickly | mature |
| bring about | phr.v. | To cause something to happen. | “New technology has brought about huge changes in how people learn languages.” | bring about change, bring about reform | cause |
| end up | phr.v. | To arrive at a final result or location, often unexpectedly. | “I started studying engineering but ended up specialising in design after my second year.” | end up working, end up living | finish up |
| get into | phr.v. | To become interested in or gain admission to. | “I got into photography during the pandemic when I had more time at home.” | get into a hobby, get into university | take up / be admitted |
| hand in | phr.v. | To submit something, especially work. | “Most students hand in essays online now, although a few professors still prefer paper copies.” | hand in homework, hand in a report | submit |
| drop out | phr.v. | To leave a course or activity before finishing. | “Universities track drop-out rates carefully because they often signal larger problems with the curriculum or support services.” | drop out of university, drop out of a course | withdraw |
| take on | phr.v. | To accept responsibility for something. | “I took on extra hours over the summer to save for my postgraduate course.” | take on responsibility, take on a project | accept |
| put off | phr.v. | To postpone or delay; to discourage. | “Many students put off applying for graduate jobs until after exams, but earlier applications tend to be more successful.” | put off a decision, put off until later | delay |
| come down with | phr.v. | To become ill with a particular sickness. | “Half the office came down with the flu last winter at the same time.” | come down with a cold, come down with flu | catch |
| get over | phr.v. | To recover from an illness or difficult experience. | “It took me a few weeks to get over the jet lag after my last long-haul trip.” | get over an illness, get over a breakup | recover from |
| set off | phr.v. | To begin a journey; to trigger an event. | “We set off at sunrise to avoid the worst of the traffic.” | set off early, set off an alarm | depart / trigger |
| wind down | phr.v. | To relax after work or activity; to reduce activity gradually. | “Reading for half an hour before bed is how I wind down at the end of a long day.” | wind down after work, wind down a business | relax |
| look up to | phr.v. | To admire and respect someone. | “I've always looked up to my older sister because she's so patient with people.” | look up to a mentor, look up to a parent | admire |
| fall behind | phr.v. | To fail to keep up with a schedule or with others. | “If you miss even one week of an intensive language course, it's surprisingly hard not to fall behind.” | fall behind on work, fall behind schedule | lag |
Using these in IELTS Speaking
IELTS Speaking rewards natural production over recall. Aim to slip a higher-register word like take up or carry out into your answer at the moment the question invites it, rather than forcing a memorised phrase into the opening sentence. Examiners notice when vocabulary feels rehearsed.
If you are not sure of a collocation, use a slightly safer word you control. A single confident use of grow up in Part 3 — where the question explicitly invites discussion — gives examiners more evidence of range than a stilted opening sentence with three advanced terms.
Common traps to avoid
The most common phrasal verbs for speaking trap at band 6.5 is collocation mismatch — using a word in a combination native speakers would not produce. The collocations column on the table above is the most important field for avoiding this; learn take up not as a single word but as part of the collocations listed beside it.
The second trap is register mismatch: using an informal word in a Writing Task 2 essay, or an overly formal word in a personal Speaking answer. The example sentences on this page are calibrated to the register IELTS expects for each section listed in the header.
Common questions
How many of these phrasal verbs for speaking words do I actually need to know?
Pick a manageable set rather than trying to memorise all 40. Roughly twelve to fifteen words you can use accurately is worth more than 40 words you recognise but cannot produce. Start with the ones that fit the prompts you are most likely to get on test day, and rehearse each one in a full sentence rather than in isolation.
Will I lose marks if I use an unfamiliar word incorrectly?
Examiners specifically penalise inaccurate use of less common vocabulary on the IELTS Lexical Resource rubric. A misused band-8 word costs you more than a correctly used band-6 word would. The safer strategy is to use a slightly more familiar word with confidence than to reach for an advanced term you are not sure of. Practise the words on this page in real sentences and only deploy them when you are certain of both meaning and collocation.
Where in the IELTS exam does phrasal verbs for speaking vocabulary appear?
This vocabulary is most useful in Speaking Part 1, Speaking Part 2, and Speaking Part 3. Function-style vocabulary like this is graded under the Coherence and Cohesion criterion in Writing and the Lexical Resource criterion in Speaking — both account for 25 per cent of your band in those sections.
How should I memorise this vocabulary effectively for IELTS?
Spaced repetition works for vocabulary the same way it works for any other memorisation task: review a small set daily for three or four days, then less often as recall becomes automatic. The crucial extra step for IELTS is to practise each word in spoken sentences, not just on flashcards. The Lexical Resource rubric rewards production, not recognition.
Will overusing connectors hurt my Writing band?
Yes — the IELTS Writing Task 2 band-6 descriptor explicitly warns against "overuse" of cohesive devices, and band 7 expects them to be used "appropriately though some over- or under-use". Pick a small number of connectors per essay (typically one per paragraph in introduction and conclusion, two or three in body paragraphs) and vary which functional category you draw from. Stuffing every sentence with "however" and "moreover" actually lowers your band.
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