English Irregular Verb tables with lists of example phrases (know - shoot).

Example phrases

- *I know Mary very well. We grew up together in London.
- *I never knew him well; I only met him on one occasion.
- *I knew what she was going to say before she even spoke.
- *I got married last year. Really! I didn't know that. (Note preference for past simple here and not present perfect.)
Syn. or meaning - *have information about something or someone. Don't confuse with "meet" when talking about people.

- *You lead the way. I don't know where to go.
- *Zapatero led the Socialist party in Spain for many years. (be the leader)
- The marketing campaign led to an increase in sales. (to result)
Syn. or meaning - *go in front and others follow.

- *I've learnt a lot this year thanks to the wonderful teacher I've had.
- I was surprised to learn that she'd studied all her irregular verbs. (find out, discover)
- Yes, she's learnt the whole list by heart. (memorise)
Syn. or meaning - *gain knowledge. (There is no difference in meaning or register between "learnt" and "learned".)
Ant. teach.

- *I left the medicine on the top shelf so my little daughter couldn't reach it.
- I leave home a 8.00 at get to work at 8.30.
- I left my keys at home this morning. Now I can't open the office. (forget)
- Mary has left her husband again. He feels very lonely now. (break a relationship, abandon)
- I can't do this crossword. I'm going to leave it. (stop doing something)
- Sorry, Mrs Davis isn't here. She left the company six months ago. (stop working somewhere)
Syn. or meaning - *Put in a particular place.

- Can you lend me some money? I haven't been paid this month.
Syn. or meaning - give something on condition it is returned.

- *Let me help you. I know how to do it.
- *Let us be friends (rather formal with "us".)
- We've let the house for a year. that way we make some money while we're abroad. (rent)
Syn. or meaning - *allow

- *I've lost my dog. Have you seen him?
- I got lost in Madrid. I didn't have a map. (Not be able to find your way.)
- I don't think he should be in this English class. He's completely lost. (not understand)
- Get lost, creep! (Go away. Insulting.)
Syn. or meaning - *mislay, not be able to find.
Ant. find

- *This company makes office furniture.
- *He doesn't cook very well but he makes delicious cakes. (Here, mix ingredients and bake. Also make the dinner and other dishes.)
- The cleaner is very good; she makes the beds too. (Arrange the sheets and blankets on the bed.)
- John is a very friendly person. He makes friends easily. (People like him.)
- She made a reservation (booking) for her foreign trip. (complete some transaction)
- I couldn't make the class last week. I was ill. (attend)
- I didn't make it to work on time this morning. My car broke down. (arrive)
Syn. or meaning - *construct or prepare something by putting different components together. There may be confusion with "do", which can have a similar meaning but is used in different contexts.

- *What does this mean? I don't know. My English is very bad.
- I'm sorry I said that. I didn't mean to be rude. (intend)
Syn. or meaning - *signify.

- *I met Carmen in the street today. She said 'hello'.
- *I met a nice girl at the party.
- *We're meeting on Monday. There is a lot to talk about.
- *I met up with my friends. We had a beer together.
- He met with a sorry end. He was killed by a mad elephant. (Experience something, often bad.)
Syn. or meaning - *encounter somebody, intentionally or by chance, either for the first time or repeatedly.

- *I paid the restaurant bill for everybody. It was very expensive.
- That was a terrible thing you did. You'll pay for this. (Give compensation, not necessarily money.)
Syn. or meaning - *give money in exchange for something.

- *He put the flowers in a vase then he put the vase on the table.
- They put their grandmother in an old people's home. It was difficult to look after her at home.
- Put yourself in my shoes. What would you do?
Syn. or meaning - *place (usually an object). Also see set, which can have the same meaning.

- *Have you read Crime and Punishment? It's a fascinating book.
- I read History at University. (study)
Syn. or meaning - *look at and understand written words.

- Can you ride a horse?
- I've ridden my bicycle to work today. I don't like driving the car.
- We went riding in the mountains last weekend. I love horses.
- My daughter rode on all the rides at the fair. She had a great time.
Syn. or meaning - journey in or on a vehicle, machine or animal.

- *The church bells rang during the wedding.
- *When the phone rang, I picked it up immediately.
- I'd like to invite Jane to my party. Good idea! Why don't you ring her? (telephone)
- Do you know Samantha? I'm not sure but the name rings a bell. (vaguely remind)
Syn. or meaning - *make a bell sound.

- The sun rises in the morning.
- Prices have risen by 2% this month. Things are more expensive.
Syn. or meaning - Go up physically or figuratively.
- Our spirits rose when we heard the good news. (become happier)
Ant. sink, go down.

- *Cheetahs can run extremely fast. They are the fastest animals on Earth.
- *I go running every morning. It keeps you fit. (as a sport)
- He runs a marketing business. He started the business last year. (To be in charge of)
- Click here to start the programme running. (function)
Syn. or meaning - *move fast, usually on legs.

- *He said he was coming to see us today. (Use "say" here when there is no indirect object. Compare with "tell".))
- *What did he say to you? (We don't usually say "say you".)
Syn. or meaning - *communicate with spoken words via the vocal chords and mouth.

- *Can you see that bird over there? No, I can't.
- Read this explanation and you'll see what I mean... Do you see now? (understand)
- I'm going to see my grandmother. I haven't been to her house for ages. (visit)
- He's seeing another girl. I think he really likes her. (have an amorous relationship)
Syn. or meaning - *perceive with the eyes. (Note we usually say "can you see?" and "I can't see" and not usually "do you see" or "I don't see" when we talk about perception. However, in the past tense, we say "Did you see that bird?".)

- We've sold our house at last. We're moving out next month.
Syn. or meaning - give something in exchange for money.
Ant. buy.

- John sent Mary some flowers for her birthday. She received them today.
- I've sent an email to all my friends.
Syn. or meaning - transmit something often via a postal or electronic system.
Ant. receive, get.

- *Set it down here carefully. It'll look nice on this table.
- The hijackers decided to set the hostages free. (Cause someone or something to be in a particular way.)
- The film was set in the Wild West. (to base)
- Can you set the table? We've got some friends coming for lunch. (Place knives and forks etc. that you need to eat a meal.)
- The sun sets at 6.15pm today. (to go below horizon)
Syn. or meaning - *place in a particular position, put.

- I need to sew a button on this shirt. There's one missing.
Syn. or meaning - *attach using cotton thread.

- The sun shone all day last Saturday. It was so warm that we went swimming.
- Can you shine the torch here? I can't see what I'm doing.
Syn. or meaning - emit light from some source.

- *The President has been shot. I don't know if he's dead.
- They shot the film in our town. Tom Cruise was here. (make a film)
Syn. or meaning - *fire a bullet from a gun etc.