Conflict & Problems

An archaic or rare phrasal verb meaning to lessen or decrease in some quality or degree.

To defeat or outperform someone decisively, or to manoeuvre someone out of a position.

To take an action that opposes, contradicts, or works contrary to something.

To behave badly or in a difficult way, or (of a machine or body part) to stop working properly.

To stock up on ammunition, or figuratively to gather arguments, facts, or resources in preparation for a confrontation.

To respond promptly and honestly when questioned or challenged, especially in a direct or assertive way.

To suddenly become angry or agitated, or to cause someone to become angry.

To defeat someone in an argument or to convince someone to accept a lower price through negotiation.

To settle a disagreement or find a solution by discussing it thoroughly, even if it involves debate.

To supply or distribute weapons or equipment outward to others, especially to external groups or allies.

To equip oneself or others with weapons, or to build up military or defensive capability.

To waste time doing silly or unproductive things; to behave foolishly or irresponsibly.

To waste time, behave foolishly, or deal with something in an unhelpfully indirect or incompetent way.

To ruin or make a mess of something through incompetence or carelessness.

To behave in a way that makes something bad or negative very likely to happen to you.

Vulgar slang meaning to abandon someone or withdraw from a commitment at the last moment.

To move backwards away from someone or something, or to withdraw from a position or commitment.

To withdraw from a position, argument, or confrontation; to stop insisting on something.

To reverse a vehicle into something, to collide with something while moving backwards, or to enter a situation indirectly or by chance.

To stop pressuring someone, to move away from something, or to reduce an aggressive or intense approach.

To withdraw from a commitment, agreement, or plan, especially after promising to take part.

Caribbean English slang meaning to damage, harm, or ruin something or someone, or to make something worse.

Australian slang meaning to criticize or speak negatively about someone.

To abandon a person, plan, or commitment, often suddenly and without adequate notice.

To rescue someone from trouble, or to escape from a difficult or dangerous situation.

To abandon or desert someone, especially at a critical or difficult moment.

To stop and detain someone by force or threat, or to corner someone for a conversation.

British English spelling variant of 'bail out': to escape by parachute from an aircraft, or to rescue someone from difficulty.

To reprimand or scold someone angrily and loudly.

To roll or scrunch something into a tight ball; or to confuse or confound a person or situation.

(British, vulgar slang) To make a serious mess of something; to ruin or mismanage a task.

To come together as a group in order to achieve a common goal or oppose something.

To damage something or someone through impact; in British slang, to imprison; used as an adjective meaning excellent.

To block access to an area or prevent entry using a bar or barrier.

To lose or surrender something valuable through negotiation, usually carelessly or unwisely.

To enter a place or collide with someone forcefully and without care; to interrupt something intrusively.

To treat someone or something roughly, hitting or knocking them in various directions.

To break or dent something by hitting it hard; to smash inward.

To attack and injure someone physically; to damage something through hitting.

To deflect, dismiss, or push something aside with a batting movement; to ward off questions or criticism.

To secure or fasten something firmly, or to prepare carefully for a difficult situation.

To compete or struggle intensely against an opponent until one side wins.

To resolve or settle something through intense struggle, competition, or argument.

To scold or reprimand someone loudly and angrily. (Rare, chiefly dialectal variant of 'bawl out')

To scold or reprimand someone loudly and angrily; or to shout or cry very loudly.

To be about to experience something, usually something unpleasant or surprising and unavoidable.

To have discovered something important, to suspect someone, or to be in contact with someone.

To have recognised or discovered something, or to have realised what someone is doing.

To be determined to get or achieve something, often for selfish or personal gain.

To speak impudently, insolently, or cheekily; to talk back. (Rare, chiefly British dialectal)

To exert pressure or force against something; or to hold a grudge or animosity toward someone.

To move toward someone or something in a threatening or forceful manner; to put pressure on someone or something.

To force someone or something to retreat by fighting or resisting strongly.

To shine or fall intensely (of sun or rain); to defeat or suppress someone forcefully; or to negotiate a lower price.

To force someone to learn or accept something through harsh, repeated pressure or punishment.

To successfully repel an attack, challenge, or competitor.

To hit someone or something repeatedly; to bully or target someone physically.

To attack and injure someone by hitting them repeatedly.

To physically attack or harshly criticize someone, especially a weaker or easier target.

To become more muscular or physically larger; sometimes used informally to mean to back down from a confrontation.

A softened exclamation telling someone to go away; an old-fashioned euphemism for a stronger phrase.

A non-standard spelling variant of 'beggar off': a rude dismissal telling someone to go away.

To shout or say something very loudly in a deep, powerful voice.

Legal: for a court to order someone to keep the peace or appear in court at a future date, usually under threat of penalty.

British slang: to make an obscene gesture at someone by raising the middle finger.

Vulgar slang: to speak angrily or complain aggressively, often at or about someone.

To harshly scold or berate someone; or (reflexive/intransitive) to back down from a challenge in a cowardly way.

To ruin or spoil something through incompetence or carelessness.

To retaliate sharply against criticism or an attack; or to stop yourself from saying or showing something.

To begin to have a painful, sharp, or corrosive effect on something; to cut into a surface.

To sever something with the teeth; or figuratively, to take on more than one can handle.

To fire weapons continuously; to attack or demolish something with great force; or to proceed energetically at a task.

Of a fire: to suddenly burn more intensely; figuratively, of anger or trouble: to burst out suddenly.

To lose so much blood from a wound that one dies or is in critical danger; also used for liquids or resources draining away completely.

To scold or reprimand someone severely; a regional American expression, chiefly Southern U.S.

To eliminate, overwhelm, or exhaust something or someone with sudden, intense force.

To initiate someone into a gang or criminal group through a violent act.

To leave a gang or criminal group, typically through an act of violence or at the cost of one's life.

To make something or someone covered in blood, usually through injury.

To destroy something by an explosion or violent force, or to thoroughly disprove an argument.

To ignore or cancel an obligation or person; for something to be removed by wind; or to release pressure.

For a problem, argument, or scandal to come to an end without serious consequences; or for wind to knock something over.

To explode or cause to explode; to inflate with air; to become very angry; or for something to suddenly become a major issue.

To escape from a difficult or embarrassing situation by pretending to be confident or by using deception.

To cover windows, doors, or openings with wooden boards, usually to secure an empty or damaged building.

To become stuck or unable to make progress, usually because of too much detail, difficulty, or work.

For a boiling liquid to bubble up and flow over the edge of its container; or (figuratively) for a situation or emotion to become uncontroll

To spoil or ruin something through carelessness or incompetence.

To ruin or spoil something through stupidity or carelessness.

To destroy a building or force people from their home by bombing; or (informal) to fail completely or be eliminated from a competition.

To make a stupid or embarrassing mistake.

To ruin, spoil, or make a mess of something, used in Southern US dialect.

To force someone to leave a place or position, often in a rough or unceremonious way.

To tell people what to do in a domineering, overbearing way, especially without the right to do so.

To tell people what to do in a domineering, controlling way, especially without proper authority.

To carry out a task or job very badly, ruining the result through clumsiness or incompetence.

To lose one's nerve and decide not to do something at the last moment, especially something that required courage.

To keep feelings or emotions tightly controlled and hidden, rather than expressing them; also, to trap someone or something so they cannot e

To move energetically into something, or to pressure someone into doing something quickly.

To show respect to someone by bowing, or to yield to someone's authority, wishes, or pressure.

Chiefly US Southern dialect: to become aggressive, defensive, or confrontational; to puff oneself up in anger.

In cricket, to dismiss a batsman by hitting the stumps with the ball; more broadly, to defeat or eliminate someone.

To surround or trap someone or something so that they cannot move freely or have limited options.

In basketball, to use your body to position yourself between an opponent and the basket; more broadly, to prevent someone from getting somet

A rare dialectal expression meaning to dismiss or put someone off with excuses or evasion.

To summon courage, strength, or resolve to face a difficult situation; to prepare yourself mentally.

to endure or face a difficult situation with boldness and nerve

to face something boldly or shamelessly until it ends

to face or endure something difficult with courage

to get through criticism, embarrassment, or trouble by acting boldly and shamelessly

to separate into pieces or make something separate into pieces

to escape, separate, or move free from someone or something

to force back, check, or reduce something, especially growth or movement

to stop working, collapse, separate into parts, or explain something step by step

to stop suddenly, separate a piece, or end a relationship or discussion

to escape, begin suddenly, or appear on the skin

to force your way through a barrier or make a major advance

to separate into pieces, end a relationship, or make people move apart

to make tea, or for trouble or bad weather to start developing

to cause something to happen, especially a change or result

to reduce, defeat, make someone sad, or cause something to fall

to cause something unpleasant to fall upon someone or something

to help someone survive difficulty or illness, or to guide something successfully through

To unite people, groups, or ideas that were previously separate or in conflict.

To place something or someone under the control, authority, or influence of something else.

To cause someone to face or confront a difficulty, obstacle, or opponent.

To cause something, usually something negative, to happen to oneself or another person through one's own actions.

To react with obvious anger, irritation, or defensiveness, often shown in body language; or (of hair or fur) to stand up stiffly.

To cause or become involved in a heated quarrel, conflict, or disturbance.

To cover someone or something with bruises, or to become badly bruised.

To dismiss or ignore something such as a concern, criticism, or obstacle as if it were unimportant.

To deal with a topic or problem briefly and superficially, without giving it proper attention.

To gather courage and confront someone or something difficult or intimidating.

To yield or collapse under pressure, stress, or demands; to be unable to maintain resistance.

To add a protective layer, margin, or cushion around something to protect it from impact or fluctuation.

To remain in one's home or location during an emergency rather than evacuating (survivalist/military jargon).

To go away; used as a rude command to tell someone to leave (North American informal).

To introduce bugs or errors into a software program or system.

To go away, or used as a rude command telling someone to leave (British vulgar).

To ruin or spoil something by making a mistake (British vulgar).

To reduce the size or strength of something gradually, especially military forces or infrastructure.

To murder someone, especially in a deliberate and planned way (informal, often humorous or euphemistic).

Informal, chiefly Australian: to throw away or discard something, or to eject someone.

To block or obstruct something, especially a hole, pipe, or passage; also used for a nose blocked with mucus.

British informal: to leave or stay away from school or work without permission.

To leave or escape from a place, often in an informal or surreptitious way.

To shelter or hide in a secure location, especially to avoid danger or difficulty.

To take shelter or prepare defensively, especially in anticipation of a threat or difficult period.

To destroy a building or structure completely by fire, or to burn until nothing is left.

Chiefly British informal: to burst into laughter; also, to break apart suddenly.

To break something down by force; also (US slang) to demote someone in rank.

To enter a place suddenly and forcefully, often by breaking something; also to interrupt.

To enter a place forcefully and suddenly by breaking something; also to gain access to something protected.

(US slang) To perform a dance move or to execute something with impressive skill; also to demolish something.

(Informal) To break or snap a piece off something; also (slang) to leave quickly.

To damage or destroy something; to end a romantic relationship or friendship, often after a serious argument; to break up a fight or gatheri

To be directly touching or adjacent to something; to encounter an obstacle or boundary.

To purchase something that someone else was relying on or expected to own, leaving them without it.

An informal, rude way of telling someone to leave or stop bothering you.

British informal: to continue talking or doing something, often in a foolish or annoying way.

British slang: to ruin or spoil something by doing it badly or making a mistake.

To invoke or pray for something to descend upon someone, or to reprimand someone severely.

To cancel a planned event, activity, or course of action.

To shout something; to publicly challenge or criticise someone; or to summon someone to a scene.

To persistently focus on, dwell on, or repeatedly return to a particular topic, issue, or position.

For two things to neutralize each other so that neither has any effect, or to eliminate something by balancing it with an opposing force.

An archaic or dialectal expression meaning to be unable to tolerate or endure something.

To continue doing something despite difficulties; to behave in an excited or disruptive way; or to have a romantic or sexual affair.

To divide something, especially territory or spoils, in an aggressive or unfair way; also to cut meat at a table.

To secretly observe or investigate a place before doing something there, often with criminal intent.

To search in a disorganised or uncertain way, typically for ideas, solutions, or something to say.

To search widely and unsystematically for something, especially a solution, idea, or resource.

To reject or abandon something or someone, treating them as no longer useful or important.

To be stranded on a deserted shore after a shipwreck, or to throw something away.

To make someone deeply unhappy or dejected; or to throw or lower something to the ground.

To banish or expel someone from a group or place, often with a sense of moral or spiritual condemnation.

To search unsystematically in many directions for something, especially an idea or solution; a British variant of 'cast around.'

To discover that someone has done something wrong, made a mistake, or is lying.

To collapse inward; or to yield to pressure and agree to something after resisting.

To record or attribute something as a fault or disadvantage against someone.

To attribute something, especially a failure or difficulty, to a particular cause.

To rush or move downward or toward something with speed and force; also to block or deflect something by charging toward it.

To force a person, animal, or feeling to leave by chasing or pursuing them.

To force someone or something to leave by chasing them.

To dishonestly take something from someone or prevent them from getting something they deserve.

To investigate or monitor someone or something to ensure they are behaving correctly or everything is in order.

To get through a difficult or awkward situation by being bold, impudent, or cheeky.

To get through a difficult situation from start to finish purely by acting with brazen confidence and impudence.

To behave impudently or impertinently toward a specific person, especially someone in authority.

To withdraw from something or act in a cowardly or unimpressive way at a critical moment.

To scold or reprimand someone severely and angrily.

To chew food thoroughly; to destroy, damage, or consume something by or as if by chewing.

To decide not to do something because you are too scared or nervous.

A deeply offensive slur used to describe someone losing emotional control; included here for awareness only.

To strike repeatedly at something hard to break off pieces, or to gradually weaken or undermine something.

To remove material in small pieces or to make gradual, persistent progress toward a goal.

To break into or make a dent in a resource, fund, or supply by using part of it.

To force or work one's way into a situation, deal, or opportunity, often for personal gain.

To stop or restrict something by cutting off its supply, flow, or source.

To throw something away or force someone to leave a place

To take strong action to control, restrict, or suppress something that was previously tolerated

To respond to criticism or an insult with a sharp, confident, and often witty comeback

To imprison or confine someone suddenly; an old-fashioned expression.

To scratch or scrape at something persistently, or to struggle and work hard to achieve something.

To go away or leave a place, often used as a rude command; also to remove everything from a surface.

To make a place tidy; or to resolve a misunderstanding or problem; or (of weather or illness) to improve.

To descend from a high place; or to reverse a position or demand, especially under pressure.

To hold onto something or someone tightly, especially because of fear, difficulty, or desperation; to maintain a position with difficulty.

To block something gradually with an accumulation of material, making it unable to flow or function properly.

To move closer to a specific person or thing from all sides, especially in pursuit.

A formal or literary variant of 'close in on': to approach and surround a target from all sides.

To block or restrict access to an area or thing, or to eliminate a possibility.

To agree on a deal or terms with someone; or in military use, to move close enough to an enemy to engage in combat.

To hit someone on a specific part of the body, usually forcefully.

To exclude someone from a group, club, or set of activities.

To act in a superior or arrogant manner toward others; to swagger over someone.

To fire or discharge accidentally when cocked; also dialectally to go away or stop bothering someone.

British informal: to make a serious mistake or ruin something through incompetence.

A dialectal British variant meaning to ruin or spoil something; to make a mess of a situation.

To follow something in order or sequence; or to pursue or try to catch someone.

To separate into pieces; to break or disassemble; or to lose emotional composure.

To attack or move toward someone in a threatening way; or to approach a problem from a particular angle.

to cause separation, conflict, or obstruction between people or things

to criticize or punish someone strongly

to criticize, attack, or punish someone severely

to arrive in order to get, collect, attack, or seek something or someone

to become detached, happen successfully, or give a particular impression

used to tell someone to stop saying something foolish, dishonest, or exaggerated

To succeed, survive, or deliver what is needed, especially in a difficult situation.

To be classified under a category, or to experience criticism, pressure, or attack.

To encounter an obstacle, problem, or opponent that must be dealt with.

To officially sentence someone to a punishment, or to cause someone to experience a harsh or unpleasant fate.

To behave in a patronising or superior manner toward someone, treating them as inferior.

To deal with or struggle against a difficult problem, person, or situation.

To evaporate liquid by applying heat, or (in military/weapons contexts) for ammunition to fire unintentionally due to extreme heat.

To prepare a meal, or to invent a plan, excuse, or story — often one that is clever, cunning, or dishonest.

A rare variant of 'coop up' meaning to confine or shut someone or something into a restricted space.

To confine a person or animal in a small or restricted space, often causing frustration or restlessness.

To avoid a responsibility, difficult decision, or commitment in a cowardly or lazy way, often by making excuses.

To manage or deal with a difficult situation, problem, or emotion, often with some degree of difficulty.

To close off or surround an area with a barrier, tape, or line of people to prevent access, usually done by police or emergency services.

Not a widely established standard phrasal verb. May appear in niche or regional contexts meaning to form corners, to position at a corner, o

To lower the body into a crouching or lying position, often to hide or take cover.

To silence or disrupt a speaker by coughing loudly.

To conceal something, especially wrongdoing or mistakes, or to place something over an object to hide it.

To show toughness and perseverance in the face of difficulty; to stop complaining and deal with a hard situation.

To take firm action to stop or punish illegal or undesirable activity.

To force a way through something, or to make significant progress through a difficult task or barrier.

To annoy or irritate someone; used in some dialects as a variant of 'tick off' or 'p*** off'.

To fail or stop working suddenly; to withdraw from a commitment at the last moment; to lose in a dice game (gambling origin).

To ruin or spoil something through poor performance or careless action.

To sleep at someone's home informally and without prior arrangement; or to enter a place suddenly and forcefully.

To enter slowly and gradually, often without being noticed — used of people, abstract things, or influences.

To increase or rise gradually and slowly, often without being immediately noticed; or to approach someone quietly.

To approach someone or something slowly and quietly so as not to be noticed; or for something to happen so gradually that you are not aware

A deeply offensive and derogatory slang expression — included here only to warn learners never to use it. It variously means to become incap

A deeply offensive and derogatory slang expression — included here only to warn learners. It means to disable or cripple someone or somethin

Gaming slang for achieving a critical hit that eliminates or severely damages a target; also informally used for emphatically criticising so

To become ill, injured, or broken; to cause someone to break down physically or mentally.

To appear or happen unexpectedly, especially a problem or topic that needs attention.

To confuse, deceive, or betray someone; to act in a way contrary to what was expected or agreed.

To force something or someone out by filling the available space, leaving no room for them.

To extinguish something by pressing or squeezing; or to eliminate something completely by crushing it.

To be in urgent, obvious need of something; to desperately require something.

To hit or strike someone with an open hand, often lightly or dismissively.

To direct a stream of angry, abusive, or profane language at someone.

To verbally attack someone using a lot of swear words and angry insults.

To move around casually or travel about an area; also, to slash or cut something in multiple places.

An informal, somewhat old-fashioned way of telling someone to leave or go away.

To reduce the amount of something; to fell a tree; or to knock someone down or kill them.

An informal command telling someone to stop doing something annoying or unacceptable.

To separate something by cutting; to stop a supply; to interrupt someone; or to isolate someone from others.

To move or cut directly through something, often a shortcut; or to deal with complexity clearly and directly.

To reduce the intensity of something — a fire, a feeling, or a situation — by suppressing or moderating it.

To reduce the force, intensity, or enthusiasm of something, especially an emotion, situation, or public reaction.

To move around something in a lively way, or figuratively, to avoid directly addressing a topic or issue.

Informal/internet slang: to be eliminated from a situation, gene pool, or competition due to one's own stupidity, recklessness, or poor deci

To distribute or dispense something — especially punishment, criticism, or blows — forcefully or in measured portions.

To distribute something among several people, or to inflict something such as punishment.

To give cards or deliver a blow to a specific person.

To take action to handle a situation, problem, or person, or to be about a particular subject.

An archaic or rare form meaning to deprive someone of something or to withhold something from them.

To arrive somewhere suddenly and in large numbers, often in an overwhelming or unwelcome way.

A more formal or literary variant of 'descend on': to arrive suddenly in large numbers or to befall someone.

To lose courage and withdraw from something at the last moment (vulgar slang).

To ruin or spoil something through incompetence or carelessness (vulgar slang).

To gradually reduce in strength, intensity, or level until calm or quiet is restored.

To stop working or functioning, leaving someone in a difficult situation; or to die while in the company of someone.

To start eating enthusiastically; to establish a defensive position; or to resist firmly.

To fail to get something or be unlucky (Australian English); or to leave a place quickly and quietly.

To leave or abandon a place, person, or commitment suddenly and without fulfilling obligations.

To abolish, eliminate, or get rid of something permanently; informally, to kill someone.

To speak negatively about someone, or to cheat or treat someone unfairly. (British English)

To ruin, destroy, or be sufficient for something; to manage household tasks for someone. (British English)

An archaic, dialectal, or non-standard expression sometimes meaning to finish or get rid of something.

To clean or redecorate a room thoroughly; or to cheat someone out of something they are entitled to. (British English)

To deprive someone of something they deserve through trickery or unfair means.

To alter, falsify, or improve something, often in a deceptive or unofficial way.

To produce or arrange something hastily and often in a makeshift or deceptive way. (British/Australian slang)

To follow someone persistently and annoyingly, or to move around as if tracking someone.

To insult, criticise harshly, or disrespect someone. (American slang)

To intensify one's commitment to a course of action or position, especially when under pressure.

To make someone or something worse, lower in quality, or more negative.

To involve someone or something unnecessarily or by force in a situation.

To force or draw someone into a situation, place, or activity they do not want to be part of.

To continue for much longer than expected or desired, in a tedious way.

To make something last longer than necessary, or to pull someone or something out of a place by force.

To mention something unpleasant from the past that would be better forgotten, or to raise a child poorly.

To make something or someone come out gradually; to prolong something; or to encourage someone to talk.

To bring up unpleasant memories or information from the past that would be better left forgotten.

To wear informal clothes, or to scold or reprimand someone severely.

To return somewhere by driving, or to force a person or group to retreat.

To leave a place in a vehicle, or to force a person or animal to go away.

To force a person, group, or thing to leave a place permanently.

To accidentally or carelessly say or do something that causes another person to get into trouble.

To officially and publicly expel someone from an organization, especially in a shameful or ceremonial way.

To lower your body or head quickly, usually to avoid being seen or hit.

To leave a place discreetly or to avoid a responsibility, often at the last minute.

(British informal) To attack and physically beat someone up.

An extremely rare and non-standard phrase, occasionally used informally to mean involving someone in a fight or confrontation.

To fight or compete intensely with someone in order to settle a dispute or determine a winner.

To knock someone out or defeat someone in a fight; a less common variant of 'duke it out'.

An extremely rare and non-standard expression meaning to raise one's fists ready to fight.

To treat someone badly by criticizing them harshly or by unloading your problems and emotional burdens on them unfairly.

To publicly humiliate, defeat decisively, or make fun of someone, especially in a clever or dramatic way; derived from basketball dunking.

A minor fight, quarrel, or confrontation between people.

To become less intense, severe, or demanding, or to reduce pressure on something.

To relax one's effort or become less harsh, demanding, or intense.

To gradually destroy or damage something through a slow, continuous process.

To gradually damage, reduce, or emotionally trouble something or someone.

To defeat or displace someone or something by a very small margin.

A euphemistic way of saying 'f*** off' — to tell someone rudely to go away or to express anger.

A euphemism for 'f*** up' — to make a serious mistake or ruin something.

To encourage someone to do something risky, foolish, or unwise, often through taunting or peer pressure.

To have a particular result or conclusion, especially an unpleasant one.

When a computer program or system stops running and displays an error message because it has encountered a problem it cannot handle.

To give reasons or excuses for something problematic in a way that minimizes it or tries to make it seem unimportant.

A euphemistic spelling/pronunciation of a very strong expletive used to tell someone to go away or express extreme anger.

To confront someone or something boldly and force them to back down through courage or determination.

To confront or compete directly against someone or something, often at a decisive or dramatic moment.

To endure or brazen out a difficult, embarrassing, or challenging situation until it is resolved.

Positioned with the face, front, or surface turned upward; also used informally to mean to be honest or confront something.

To accept and deal bravely with a difficult, unpleasant, or frightening reality rather than avoiding it.

A euphemistic or written softening of the vulgar phrase 'fuck off,' used to tell someone to go away or to express strong disbelief or irrita

To deceive or bluff someone with a false move or misleading action.

To fabricate, forge, or put together something false in order to deceive.

To break into pieces or collapse completely, physically or figuratively.

To move backward or retreat, especially under pressure.

To drop to the ground, or to fail at a specific point.

To fail to do something properly; to perform inadequately in a specific area of responsibility.

To become romantically attracted to someone, or to be deceived by a trick or lie.

To land on something, to attack eagerly, or to be someone's responsibility.

To drop or detach from a container, or to have a disagreement that damages a relationship.

An archaic or literary expression meaning to rush out and attack, or to chance upon someone.

Of a plan, deal, or arrangement: to fail to happen or be completed.

To attack suddenly, to discover by chance, or (of a duty) to become someone's responsibility.

A rude dismissal meaning 'go away,' or to leave in a casual or dismissive manner. (Vulgar British slang)

To fail, end, or stop functioning in a feeble or undignified way. (Vulgar informal)

To enclose an area or person with a fence, or to restrict someone's freedom or choices.

To push back or repel someone or something; an archaic/rare variant of 'fend off'.

To defend yourself against an attack, a threat, or unwanted attention by pushing it away or deflecting it.

To admit or confess to something, especially something you have done wrong or have been trying to hide.

An archaic or dialectal term meaning to rescue or remove someone from a dangerous place.

A rare or non-standard variant occasionally used to mean deflecting or handling unwanted questions or challenges; not widely established.

To defend yourself by attacking or opposing someone who has attacked you, or to struggle to suppress an emotion.

To settle a disagreement, competition, or conflict by fighting or competing until one side wins.

To defend yourself successfully against an attacker, illness, or an unwanted thing by fighting or struggling against it.

To settle or resolve a dispute, competition, or conflict by fighting or competing until a conclusion is reached.

Not an established standard phrasal verb in modern English. Occasionally used in archaic or literary contexts to mean struggling upward agai

To complete the final part of something, to consume the last of something, or to defeat and destroy someone or something completely.

To tell someone they are free to begin asking questions or speaking, or to shoot continuously.

To send something quickly and often forcefully, such as a letter or email, or to shoot a weapon or launch something rapidly.

To expel someone forcefully, or to shoot or deliver something outward rapidly.

To lose carbonation, energy, or momentum — a less common variant of 'fizzle out'.

To end or fail gradually and in a disappointing, unexciting way.

To draw attention to something, especially a problem, issue, or concern, so that it can be dealt with.

To fail suddenly and dramatically, especially after a promising start; or for an aircraft engine to stop working.

For a fire or flames to suddenly become more intense and larger.

For fire to suddenly become more intense; for a feeling, illness, or conflict to suddenly worsen or re-emerge.

To show off or boast at someone's expense, especially to demonstrate superiority over them.

To throw or push something or someone out forcefully and often with emotion.

To turn off a switch with a flipping motion; or (informal, rude) to make an obscene hand gesture at someone.

To suddenly lose control of one's emotions, either through anger, excitement, or shock.

To openly mock or show contempt for a rule, authority, or convention.

To dismiss or send someone away rudely; also used as a softened expletive equivalent to 'go away'.

To succeed or escape a bad situation purely by chance or a stroke of luck.

To suddenly break into pieces that scatter in different directions, often violently.

To suddenly attack someone physically or verbally with great force and anger.

To rush at and attack something or someone suddenly; or to seize upon something eagerly (archaic/literary).

To get rid of someone by giving them something inferior, or to dismiss someone with poor excuses.

To force or trick someone into accepting something unwanted or inferior.

To ruin or spoil something by making a foolish mistake.

To handle, tamper with, or become involved with something or someone in a careless or risky way.

To push or drive something into a space using force, overcoming resistance.

To compel someone or something to leave or be removed, usually against their will.

To take up a defended position and prepare to resist; to fortify a place.

To ruin, spoil, or make a serious mess of something through mistakes or incompetence.

To deliberately exclude or ignore someone in order to make them feel unwanted or to force them out.

A rude and vulgar way of telling someone to go away or leave you alone.

To ruin or spoil something through incompetence or carelessness.

Variant spelling of 'frig up': to ruin or spoil something through careless or incompetent action.

For a machine or device to malfunction, behave erratically, or stop working.

An informal, less common variant of 'fritz out': for something to malfunction or go wrong.

To confront someone aggressively or challenge them face-to-face, often in a threatening way.

To present oneself in a bold, confident, or confrontational way, often projecting a tougher image than one truly has.

To appear or present yourself to face a difficult situation, challenge, or responsibility; to show up when required.

An archaic or dialectal variant of 'fob off', meaning to cheat, deceive, or dismiss someone with something inferior.

British vulgar slang for wasting time, behaving foolishly, or treating someone inconsiderately.

American vulgar slang for wasting time, behaving recklessly, or having casual sexual encounters.

Vulgar slang for completely ruining or spoiling a specific thing through an error or poor handling.

Strongly vulgar expression used to tell someone to go away, or to describe going away oneself; also used as an exclamation of disbelief.

Vulgar slang meaning to treat someone very unfairly, deceive them, or cause them serious harm, especially through betrayal.

British vulgar slang variant of 'fuck about' or 'fuck around', meaning to waste time or treat someone inconsiderately.

Vulgar slang meaning to make a serious mistake, ruin something, or cause psychological damage to a person.

Vulgar slang meaning to interfere with something, provoke or challenge someone, or deliberately confuse or deceive someone.

To assemble or create something hastily and imprecisely, often by obscuring problems or presenting an unclear compromise.

An informal, somewhat dated expression meaning to lose one's nerve or back down from something out of fear or cowardice.

To make something deliberately or inadvertently vague or unclear, often to avoid dealing with it precisely.

British slang meaning to inadvertently or deliberately reveal someone's secret, expose their deception, or 'blow someone's cover'.

To join together as a group, usually in opposition to someone.

For multiple people to join together to attack, criticise, or oppose a single person or group.

To force people or creatures out of a place using gas, or to become overwhelmed by gas fumes.

To close off or restrict access to an area by installing or closing a gate.

Northern English and Scottish dialect for pushing oneself into a conversation, group, or queue without being invited.

To persistently nag or scold someone, or to begin pursuing someone or something.

To move from place to place, to avoid or circumvent something, or (of news) to spread widely.

To imply something indirectly, to criticise someone repeatedly, or to reach/access something.

To do something wrong or risky without being caught or punished.

To take revenge on someone who has harmed or wronged you.

To position yourself between two people or things, or to interfere with a relationship.

To criticise, blame, or be negative towards yourself or others.

To become fully engaged or enthusiastic, or to start an argument or fight.

To have sex, or (less commonly) to start a fight or competitive activity.

To repeatedly criticise, pressure, or nag someone about something.

To succeed in deceiving, tricking, or gaining an advantage over someone.

To gain a competitive advantage or score a point over a rival.

To leave a place, escape a situation, or (of information) to become known.

To escape from or free oneself from a heavy burden, debt, obligation, or oppressive situation.

To exit a physical space, avoid an obligation, or obtain something from someone.

To recover from illness, loss, or difficulty, or to overcome a problem or obstacle.

To deceive, trick, or successfully manipulate someone.

To move beyond a physical obstacle, overcome a barrier, or advance beyond a difficult stage.

To eliminate, discard, or free yourself from something or someone unwanted

To find a way to avoid or deal with a problem or restriction, or to persuade someone.

To successfully survive a difficult period, finish a task, contact someone, or make someone understand.

(Slang) To intrude into someone's personal space or private business in an aggressive or unwelcome way.

To stop resisting and accept something, or to submit work or a document to someone.

A variant form of 'give in to,' meaning to yield to a temptation, demand, or feeling.

To scold, punish, or criticize someone harshly, or to defeat someone convincingly.

To stop trying at something, to abandon a habit or activity, or to surrender someone or something.

To hit a surface at an angle and move off in a different direction, rather than making direct contact.

For a device, program, or system to malfunction erratically or behave in an unexpected, unpredictable way.

To deal with something briefly and superficially, avoiding its true difficulty or importance.

To grind or crush something violently with the teeth; an extremely rare and non-standard phrasal verb.

To pursue, chase, or try to obtain someone or something.

To oppose, contradict, or be in conflict with someone or something.

To attack someone or something, or to do something with great energy and enthusiasm.

To fight, argue, or engage in an activity with great energy and intensity.

To leave a place; to take a trip; or (of a problem) to disappear.

To fail to honour a promise, agreement, or decision that was previously made.

To choose, attempt, attack, or be attracted to something or someone.

To make a sudden loud noise, to stop liking something, to explode, or for food to become rotten.

To suddenly start talking angrily, excitedly, or at great length, often in an exaggerated or theatrical way.

To experience something difficult, examine something carefully, or consume a supply of something.

To do something that was planned or promised, even though it is difficult or you have doubts.

To compete directly with or face as an opponent, especially someone or something considered difficult to beat.

To make a mistake or do something incorrectly.

To act in a stupid, aggressive, or oafish way; to behave like a goon.

To remove something by digging, cutting, or forcing it out, leaving a hole or cavity; often violent in connotation.

To make a quick, often desperate or clumsy attempt to seize something; to eagerly try to take an opportunity.

To take something quickly from a surface or from someone, especially in a hurried or forceful manner.

To struggle or deal with a difficult problem, idea, or physical opponent.

To inform on someone to an authority, especially the police, in a way considered disloyal or treacherous.

To inform on someone to the police or another authority; a British slang synonym of 'grass on'.

To wear something down by grinding, or to exhaust and demoralize someone through relentless pressure.

To grab or seize someone or something firmly; used in informal or street slang contexts.

In baseball, to be put out by hitting a ground ball; more broadly, to come to a halt or fail to advance.

To take precautions to prevent something harmful or undesirable from happening.

To cause a mechanism, plan, or process to stop working properly by clogging it or making it inefficient.

To make something sticky, clogged, or inefficient with a gummy substance — a variant of 'gum up'.

To shoot and kill or seriously injure someone with a firearm, often suddenly and deliberately.

To aggressively pursue, target, or seek to defeat or harm someone or something.

To fire a gun or shoot rapidly; also used informally to mean to speak aggressively or impulsively.

To make something dirty, sticky, or blocked with a messy substance.

To endure or complete something very difficult through sheer determination and willpower.

To summon courage and face a difficult or frightening situation; to find one's nerve.

An emphatic informal variant of 'gut out': to endure something very difficult with great courage and determination.

To keep cutting or striking something forcefully and repeatedly; to persist at a difficult task with energy.

To become defensive, angry, or agitated, like an animal raising the hackles on the back of its neck.

To fall or descend on something or someone in great quantity and with force, like hailstones.

To work at something persistently and with great energy; also to repeat a point or argument forcefully and continuously.

To produce or reach something (a deal, agreement, or solution) after long and difficult discussion or effort.

To manage, deal with, or perform effectively, especially in a difficult or competitive situation.

To hesitate or be reluctant to move forward or participate, often due to shyness or uncertainty.

To persist through a difficult situation; usually used in the expression 'hang in there'.

To dangle from something, often precariously, or (informal) to stop doing something.

To wait; to hold onto something; or to persist through difficulty.

To project or suspend above something, or to be a persistent worry or threat that affects a situation.

To depend entirely on something, or to listen/watch with great intensity.

To become tougher, stronger, or more resilient, physically or emotionally.

To talk repeatedly and tediously about the same thing, especially a complaint or criticism.

To reduce the harshness or severity of something, such as language, criticism, or a policy.

To discuss and settle something thoroughly through careful, often lengthy debate or negotiation.

To spoil, ruin, or do something badly; to make a mess of something.

To secretly devise or plot a plan, scheme, or idea, often with cunning or negative intent.

To forcefully remove someone or something; or to suddenly draw back and strike.

To have a reason for disliking, opposing, or objecting to someone or something.

To attack, attempt, or begin working on something energetically; used as an imperative invitation to proceed.

To have a persistent hostile attitude toward someone and want to cause them trouble.

To have a direct and frank confrontation with someone in order to settle a dispute or misunderstanding.

Chiefly American variant of 'have it in for': to be persistently hostile or resentful toward someone.

To leave and go somewhere; or to intercept and stop something or someone before it happens.

To strike someone using the head as a weapon, in combination with another person or object.

To make something hotter, or to become hotter; also used figuratively when a situation becomes more intense or tense.

To surround or restrict someone or something, limiting freedom of movement or action.

To increase or intensify something; a redundant variant of 'heighten'.

To surround or enclose someone or something so that movement or freedom is restricted.

To use something as a shield or excuse to avoid revealing your true feelings or taking responsibility.

To stay in a secret or hidden place in order to avoid being found, usually by people in authority or by enemies.

To depend entirely on one key factor or condition for an outcome.

To depend entirely on one key factor or condition; the more formal variant of 'hinge on'.

To continue hitting or striking something repeatedly and energetically.

To respond to an attack or criticism with an equally strong counter-attack or response.

To attack someone physically or to criticize someone forcefully and publicly.

To encounter a problem, barrier, or resistance that blocks progress.

To strike someone or something with an object, or to impose something burdensome on someone suddenly.

To begin eating or working at something with great enthusiasm, or to attack or criticize someone forcefully.

To take or use too much of something selfishly, leaving little for others.

To restrain someone or something, to prevent progress, or to stop oneself from expressing feelings or information.

To physically keep something in place, to maintain a job, or to prevent something from rising.

To maintain stability, composure, or cohesion in a difficult situation, preventing total collapse or breakdown.

To delay doing something, or to keep an opponent, attacker, or unwanted thing at a distance.

To extend your hand or an object toward someone, to resist surrendering or yielding, or to last under difficult conditions.

To extend something beyond its original end date, or to use something as leverage over someone

To remain united, intact, or coherent, or to cause something to stay that way

To support something physically, to delay, to endure, or to rob someone at gunpoint

To subject something to scrutiny, comparison, or testing, or to withstand such scrutiny

To hide or take shelter in a place, often for safety, to avoid someone, or to be alone

To forcibly remove or eject someone from a place

To become caught on or obsessively focused on something; to snag on a physical obstacle

To silence or embarrass a speaker by making mocking noises, hooting, or jeering

To intrude on a situation, conversation, or activity without being invited, often to gain an advantage.

To force or drive someone out of a position, territory, or situation.

To become more intense, exciting, dangerous, or competitive.

To pursue someone relentlessly and persistently until they are caught or cornered.

To silence a speaker by loudly booing, jeering, or shouting as a group.

To resolve a disagreement or emotional tension by hugging each other.

To suddenly lose control and become extremely angry or physically aggressive, like the Marvel character the Hulk.

To settle in firmly to wait out a difficult situation, or to crouch low for shelter; also, to apply oneself seriously to a task.

To search for and find someone or something after a determined, persistent effort, especially with the intention of capturing or confronting

To keep something secret by preventing people from talking about it, or to tell someone to be quiet.

To deliberately ignore or exclude someone from a social group or conversation as a form of rejection or punishment.

For a surface, machine, or mechanism to become blocked or coated with ice, often causing problems.

To secretly give information about someone's illegal or improper activities to an authority figure.

To remove or neutralize the problematic aspects of something by reinterpreting its meaning, often in a self-serving way.

To stir up someone's temper or fighting spirit; to make someone angry or combative.

To remove problems, disagreements, or rough parts so something works smoothly.

A regional slang insult for an annoying, stupid, or unpleasant person.

To block, crowd, or cause something to get stuck and stop moving smoothly.

To speak to someone in a superior, scolding, or condescending way.

To treat someone badly by wasting their time, confusing them, or not being sincere.

A very rare or nonstandard expression, sometimes used to mean mistreat or cheat someone.

An offensive antisemitic slur meaning to cheat someone out of something.

To draw back, refuse, or avoid going through with something.

Used in the fixed expression 'the jig is up,' meaning a trick, deception, or secret has been discovered and ended.

A rare variant of 'jimmy up'; to force something open using a lever or tool.

To force something open or into place using a jimmy (a crowbar-like tool) or similar leverage.

Chiefly British slang for telling someone to go away, or literally to continue jogging.

To put different things together in a disorganized or confused way.

To put things or ideas into a disordered, confused state.

To leap downward from a height, or (idiomatically) to reprimand someone sharply.

To leap onto something; to quickly take advantage of something; or to suddenly criticize someone.

To move quickly to a particular point or conclusion, often without proper consideration.

South African slang meaning to speak badly of someone or to treat someone with contempt.

To stay at a distance from something, or to prevent someone or something from coming near.

To not go near, not associate with, or not get involved with someone or something.

To maintain a low position, limit an amount or cost, prevent a group from having power, or keep food in the stomach without vomiting.

To prevent someone or something from doing something, or to stop yourself from doing something.

To maintain composure, self-control, or the effective functioning of a situation or group under pressure.

To not enter a place, or to prevent someone or something from entering.

To avoid getting involved in a situation, or to prevent someone from entering or becoming involved in something.

To hold someone under water or anaesthesia, or to control and suppress a group of people or a problem.

To resist, protest, or struggle against something, especially rules, authority, or circumstances one cannot control.

To destroy or break something open by kicking it; also used figuratively to mean to remove obstacles aggressively.

To start an event or activity, especially in an energetic or official way; also, to become angry, or to be removed from a place.

To forcefully remove someone from a place, group, or position.

To cause something to fall by kicking it; also (of an engine) to turn over and start.

To cause trouble, raise a protest, or create a noisy disturbance; also to raise dust or debris by kicking.

To cause the complete or gradual destruction, elimination, or ending of something or a group.

To dismiss someone rudely or to tell someone to go away in an insulting way.

To lose one's chance at something; to be eliminated or excluded.

To attack or stab someone with a knife; or to prepare knives for use.

Non-standard/rare variant of 'knife up'; to attack with a knife or to arm oneself with knives.

To spend time in a place without a specific purpose, or to treat someone roughly.

To cause something or someone to fall to the ground, to demolish a building, or to reduce a price.

To collide with something or someone, either accidentally or by force, or to force something into a particular shape or state.

An imperative phrase telling someone to stop doing something annoying or disruptive.

To cause something or someone to fall by hitting or bumping into it.

To yield or submit to authority, pressure, or superior force.

To submit or yield to authority, pressure, or someone's will; an archaic variant of 'knuckle under'.

To yield to authority, threats, or superior force after resisting; to submit reluctantly.

To raise one's fists in preparation for a fistfight; to prepare to fight.

To attack someone physically or verbally with great force and energy.

To attack someone or something physically or verbally with great force and energy.

To flee or escape quickly, especially from the authorities or from a difficult situation.

To strike out at someone or something with force; to hit out aggressively.

To arrive at, settle on, or find something; also, to criticise or punish someone.

To give someone an unwanted, difficult, or burdensome responsibility, task, or problem, often without their choice.

To direct one's full, sharp attention or effort very precisely onto a specific target, problem, or detail.

To retaliate sharply against criticism, an attack, or negative treatment.

To suddenly attack someone physically or verbally, often because of anger, fear, or frustration.

To survive, endure, or be sufficient for a particular period of time.

To silence, dismiss, or humiliate someone or something by meeting them with laughter or ridicule.

To begin something — especially a speech, activity, or attack — with energy and without hesitation.

To hire a lawyer or demand legal representation, typically when facing criminal investigation, interrogation, or legal threat.

To strike out vigorously in all directions, hitting people or things around you.

To be the underlying cause, reason, or motivation for something. (Note: 'lie behind' is the more standard form.)

To hide and wait in ambush for someone, usually with hostile or mischievous intent.

To attack someone physically or to criticise them very harshly.

To deceive someone by giving them false hope or encouragement, especially in a romantic context.

To excuse someone from punishment or a duty, or to fire or detonate something.

To become less intense, severe, or continuous; to stop or relax pressure.

To be physically or figuratively positioned in front of someone, waiting to be faced or decided upon.

To be the real, often hidden, reason or cause that explains something.

To attack, criticise, or start doing something energetically and with full force.

To speak rudely, impudently, or disrespectfully to someone, especially to a person in authority.

To survive a difficult, dangerous, or historically significant experience.

To share your home with someone, or to accept and continue to endure a difficult situation.

To burden someone or something with a heavy load of physical weight or responsibilities.

To use political pressure and campaigning to have something removed, excluded, or blocked.

To impose strict restrictions on movement or access to a place, especially for security or public health reasons.

To investigate or examine something carefully in order to find out more about it.

A warning to be alert to immediate danger, or to watch carefully for something.

To watch over and protect someone, or to be alert so you can help them.

To appear in the future or in the distance as something large, threatening, or difficult to avoid.

To fire a weapon or release a volley of shots; also used figuratively for sending an aggressive communication.

To behave in an arrogantly superior way toward someone, making them feel inferior.

To dominate or act in a superior, arrogant manner over others.

To be at a disadvantage or fail to gain something because of competition or bad luck.

To waste time, behave in an aimless or foolish way, or cause minor trouble.

To spoil, ruin, or make a mess of something through carelessness or incompetence.

To succeed in passing through a difficult situation or challenge purely by good fortune rather than skill or effort.

To give someone an unwanted or difficult responsibility, task, or burden, often without their consent.

To chase or pursue someone or something; to move quickly in the direction of someone who is leaving or escaping.

To be unfavorable or disadvantageous to someone or something; to work against a particular outcome.

To steal something and escape with it; or (formal/archaic) to kill someone or to destroy something.

To compensate for something lost, missed, or done wrong by doing something positive

An exclamation used to report that a person (originally a soldier) has been injured or is incapacitated; also used informally to mean a team

To endure a difficult or painful situation through to the end by drawing on courage or willpower.

To demonstrate courage, emotional strength, or responsibility, especially when facing difficulty; often used as an imperative.

(Corporate euphemism) To gradually and deliberately guide an underperforming employee toward leaving an organisation, often through performa

To cope or succeed in a situation using only what is available, even if resources or conditions are not ideal.

To continue advancing steadily and unstoppably; or to walk in a march toward a destination in protest or military formation.

To systematically exclude or push people or groups to the periphery of society, an organisation, or a process until they are effectively rem

To hire or deploy mercenary soldiers or armed contractors for a mission or conflict.

To treat someone very badly, exploit them, or cause them serious harm through dishonesty.

To make something untidy, spoil it, or make a mistake.

To interfere with something or someone, or to provoke and challenge a person.

To confine or shut a person or animal in a small, enclosed space.

To accidentally or carelessly fail to include someone or something on a list or in a set.

To grab, seize, or attach oneself tenaciously to something or someone.

To introduce variety, change, or unpredictability into a routine or situation, or to engage in a fight.

To confuse two or more things or people, or to combine ingredients together.

To gather together in a large group, often with aggressive or intimidating intent.

To publicly ridicule or humiliate someone in a pointed and deliberate way.

To absorb or remove liquid by wiping; to deal with remaining problems, enemies, or tasks after the main action is complete.

To increase gradually over time to a large or significant amount.

To speak rudely, loudly, or disrespectfully; to say offensive or boastful things without appropriate restraint.

To start living in a new home or place; also to move closer to something or someone, especially in order to take action.

To begin to take control of or encroach on something that belongs to or is associated with someone else; to approach someone or something in

To kill or knock down a large number of people rapidly and violently.

To do something badly, spoil it, or make it dirty.

To continue in a confused or disorganised way without any clear plan or improvement.

To continue in a confused or disorganised way, making progress without any real plan.

To manage to deal with a difficult situation even though you are confused or disorganised.

To confuse two or more things, or to put things into a disordered mess.

To make something physically muddy or to make a situation more complicated and confusing.

To fail at something or handle it badly, especially by being clumsy or inept at a crucial moment.

To disrespect, embarrass, or make a fool of someone, or to take advantage of someone's trust.

To think carefully and at length about a decision, idea, or problem.

To force your way into a situation or activity to get a share of the benefits, especially by using power or threats.

To force your way into someone else's business, territory, or activity in order to get a share.

A British exclamation telling someone rudely to go away.

British slang meaning to ruin or spoil something, or to disgust or irritate someone.

Informal British expression meaning to be brave, endure something difficult, or stop complaining.

To look around somewhere in a nosy or inquisitive way, searching for information or interesting things.

To search around a place in an inquisitive or prying way, trying to discover information.

To displace or defeat someone or something by a small margin or gradually.

To fight, argue, or compete with full intensity, with the implication of mutually destructive force.

To solve a problem or work out the details of something through careful thought or discussion.

To summon courage and deal with a difficult situation; to stop being afraid or weak and act decisively.

To gain an advantage over someone by doing something slightly better or more impressive than them.

To give someone a series of commands in a domineering or disrespectful way.

To give someone repeated commands in a domineering and disrespectful way.

To admit honestly that you have done something wrong, even though it is difficult.

To get rid of something unwanted or inferior by deceiving someone into accepting it.

A rare or dialectal variant of 'palm off': to deceive someone into accepting something inferior or unwanted.

To hide or conceal a problem, disagreement, or mistake with a superficial solution.

To trap someone's vehicle by parking directly behind or alongside it so they cannot drive away.

To be accepted or mistaken for something or someone different from what one actually is.

To be convincingly accepted or mistaken for something or someone that one is not.

To deliberately present something or someone as something it is not, in order to deceive others.

To ignore or not choose someone or something, especially when they might have expected to be selected.

To attempt to repair or conceal a problem, conflict, or flaw with a temporary or superficial solution rather than addressing the root cause.

to repair something damaged or to restore peace after a disagreement

to get rid of something by making someone else accept it, often unfairly

to present something falsely as being of a better or different kind

to return money that you owe, or to hurt someone in revenge

To give money in exchange for goods or services, or to suffer the consequences of your actions

to confine someone or something in a small enclosed space

An informal, gender-neutral alternative to 'man up', meaning to be brave, take responsibility, or deal with a difficult situation without co

To gradually decrease and then stop or disappear entirely.

To analyse or criticise something in very close detail, finding every flaw.

To work at something slowly and persistently, gradually reducing or making progress, or to find fault in something continually.

To shoot or eliminate targets individually with precision; to remove something by picking.

To repeatedly treat someone in an unkind or unfair way; to bully or persistently target someone.

to add a lot more of something, or to join in attacking or criticizing

to accumulate in a heap or to increase until there is too much

to accumulate in a heap or become blocked up; a rare variant of 'pile up'

to fasten something with a pin, or to place blame or responsibility on someone

To make someone very angry, or to tell someone rudely to leave.

To treat someone or something with total contempt or disregard.

To place two people, groups, or things in direct competition or conflict with each other.

To attack or criticize someone aggressively, or to begin a task with great energy.

To throw or discard something, or to remove someone forcibly.

To pit two sides against each other, exploit a contrast between things, or compete in a deciding match.

To exaggerate or emphasize something, to misbehave, or (of a machine) to stop working properly.

To continue doing something with determination despite difficulties or obstacles.

To knock down or crash into something with heavy, unstoppable force.

To crash into something with great force and momentum, or to begin a task with great energy.

To continue doing something difficult, tedious, or exhausting without stopping.

To make one's way through something difficult with great effort, or to crash through an obstacle with force.

To bury a crop or plant by ploughing the soil over it; metaphorically, to overwhelm or destroy completely.

American English: to continue doing something with determination despite difficulties or obstacles.

American English: to knock down or crash into something with heavy, unstoppable force.

To collide with something with great force, or to start something energetically

To knock something down or flatten it by moving through it with great force

To turn crops or material into the soil with a plow, or to overwhelm and destroy something completely

To enter water or begin an activity suddenly, or to cause someone or something to enter a difficult situation abruptly

To emphasize or make more noticeable a quality, problem, or distinction

To use sermons, speeches, or moral argument to condemn or suppress something or someone.

To continue with a plan or course of action in a determined way, despite difficulties or opposition.

Informal: to contort the body into a twisted, folded shape, or to become complicated and tangled.

To hunt and eat another animal, or to exploit and take advantage of vulnerable people.

to target and exploit someone or something vulnerable

to support something physically or keep it from failing

to upset, confuse, or intimidate someone mentally

to tug or move something roughly in different directions

to separate something into pieces, or criticize it in detail

to move back, retreat, or reduce involvement

To successfully deceive or trick someone.

To survive or recover from a serious illness, difficulty, or crisis.

To challenge, correct, or reprimand someone specifically about a particular error or behaviour.

To direct criticism, mockery, or attacks toward people or groups who have less power or status than oneself.

To record the end of one's workday, to hit someone, or to cut a shape out of material.

To direct criticism or humour at those with more power or status, or to make a piece of writing more energetic and impactful.

To lose one's nerve and refuse to do something out of fear; to act in a cowardly way.

To treat someone in a bossy or bullying way, telling them what to do or intimidating them.

To bully or treat someone in a domineering way, telling them what to do and giving them no respect.

To move something or someone out of the way, or to deliberately ignore or suppress feelings, problems, or people.

To resist or oppose pressure, a proposal, or a policy; also to physically move something backward or to delay something.

To force your way into a queue, space, or situation ahead of others, often rudely.

To continue moving forward or making progress, especially despite difficulty or tiredness.

To force someone or something out of a position, place, or market, often gradually.

To cause someone or something to fall by pushing it, or to describe something very easy to do.

To succeed in getting something approved or completed despite resistance, or to move physically through a crowd or obstacle.

To force someone or something below a surface, typically water, or to cause someone to fail by applying pressure.

To bring something into direct contact with a surface by pushing, or to encounter a limit or obstacle.

A milder spelling variant of 'pussy out': to avoid doing something because of fear or cowardice.

Vulgar slang: to withdraw from a commitment or challenge because of cowardice.

To place something on a surface; to criticise or humiliate someone; to end an animal's life humanely; or to suppress a rebellion.

To shift blame, responsibility, or a task onto someone else.

Used in negative constructions to say that you believe someone is capable of a particular (usually negative) action.

To deceive or trick someone successfully.

To deceive or trick someone; to gain an advantage through cunning.

To trick or deceive someone successfully; to get something by someone without them noticing.

Used in negative constructions to indicate that you believe someone is capable of doing something unexpected or bad.

To connect a phone call; to cause someone to experience something difficult; to successfully complete a process or get something approved.

To deceive, cheat, or take advantage of someone (chiefly regional American English).

To encourage, persuade, or pressure someone into doing something, usually something naughty or wrong.

To tolerate or accept something unpleasant, annoying, or difficult without complaining strongly.

To get through something difficult or confusing by thinking carefully at each step.

To settle a dispute or disagreement by arguing it through to a conclusion.

To have an angry argument or serious disagreement with someone, or to find fault with something.

To spoil, ruin, or put something in disorder; an older sense of 'queer' meaning to spoil combined with 'up.'

Australian slang: a rude command telling someone to go away or to stop bothering you.

To clean or wipe something by using a rag; or, rarely, a variant of 'rag on' meaning to tease or berate someone.

To tease, mock, or criticize someone repeatedly in a playful or nagging way.

To dress someone up in elaborate or fine clothing; or informally, to scold or reprimand someone sharply.

To protest or complain angrily and at length; or, in a physical sense, to enclose or separate an area using rails.

To examine or discuss past events in great detail, especially unpleasant or embarrassing ones.

To gather leaves with a rake; or to revive unpleasant memories, scandals, or events from the past.

To reply sharply or quickly; a rare or non-standard phrasal verb.

To annoy, provoke, or reprimand someone; a New Zealand and Australian English colloquialism.

To secretly inform on someone to an authority, especially betraying a friend or associate.

To inform on or betray someone to an authority, typically breaking loyalty.

To increase something steadily, step by step, in a way that is difficult to reverse.

To scold or criticise someone severely and angrily, often in a humiliating way.

To rise up on hind legs (of animals), or to appear suddenly and imposingly; also used of problems that arise unexpectedly.

To find an answer or solution by thinking logically and carefully through all the steps.

to consider something carefully or to face and deal with it

to fail to consider someone or something important in your plans

a common nonstandard spelling of 'rein in', meaning to control or limit something

to control, limit, or hold back something

To return to a previous state, habit, or system.

To clear a place of unwanted things or people; a dialectal/regional form of 'rid'.

To pursue and overtake or trample someone while on horseback or in a vehicle; also to travel downward on a ride.

To approach someone aggressively or at speed while riding a horse or vehicle.

To continue riding, or for an outcome to depend critically on something.

To endure a difficult period or situation until it passes.

To ride to someone's location; or to override or dismiss someone's authority, objections, or feelings.

To approach someone or something closely on horseback, bicycle, or motorcycle, sometimes unexpectedly.

To make someone angry, agitated, or emotionally excited.

To tear something into pieces violently, or to criticise something harshly, or to destroy something emotionally or physically.

To remove something from a wall or surface quickly and forcefully, or to demolish something.

To attack someone or something physically or verbally with great force, or to start on something — food, work, a task — with great energy.

To cheat someone by charging too much or stealing from them; to copy someone's idea or work without permission; or to remove something quick

To mock, tease, or criticise someone in an ongoing or repeated way, often in a joking but sometimes hurtful manner.

To remove something from its place by tearing or pulling with great force.

To tear something into small pieces, or to cancel or disregard an agreement, rule, or document.

To refuse to be affected by something negative, such as insults, petty behaviour, or difficult circumstances; to show yourself to be better

To rebel against authority or oppression; to physically move upward; or to emerge and grow stronger.

To accept an unexpected or difficult situation in a relaxed way and keep moving forward.

To find and remove or eliminate something harmful or unwanted, especially something deeply embedded.

To persuade or trick someone into doing something they did not originally intend to do.

To decay so severely that a hole appears or structural integrity is completely lost.

To assault or handle someone roughly, usually as a threat or intimidation rather than to cause serious harm.

To turn suddenly and attack or criticise someone sharply, often unexpectedly.

An archaic or literary variant of 'round on': to suddenly turn and attack or criticise someone sharply.

to come into close contact with someone, something, or a difficult reality, often causing friction

to continue for a long time, often heavily, noisily, or without a clear end

to hit something, or to come into conflict with a rule, limit, or opposition

to move quickly toward someone or something, often to attack

to leave a place quickly, often because of fear or to escape; also to leave home secretly

to escape from someone or something, or to avoid facing a problem

To run as fast as possible to escape from danger or to reach safety

To have a conflict, argument, or confrontation with someone, especially a person in authority

To meet someone by chance, to collide with something, or to encounter a problem

(Slang) To trick or deceive someone; to pull a scam or con on someone

To suddenly abandon someone who is depending on you, especially in a cowardly or irresponsible way

To encounter an obstacle, problem, or opposition that prevents you from progressing

(Slang, AAVE) To rush aggressively or boldly into a situation, place, or confrontation

(Slang, AAVE) To approach someone suddenly and aggressively, often to confront or attack them

To enter a place quickly and urgently, or to become involved in a situation too hastily

Alternative spelling of 'sack up'; vulgar slang urging someone to be brave or stop complaining.

Vulgar informal American expression urging someone to be courageous or stop being weak.

To impose an unwanted burden, responsibility, or problem on someone.

To use fear or threats to make someone do something against their will.

To manage to find, gather, or produce something with difficulty or from limited resources.

To discover or locate something by smell, or by following subtle clues.

To examine, investigate, or survey a place or situation carefully, especially before taking action.

To delete by drawing a line through text, or to gain an advantage over someone by making them look foolish.

To accidentally cause harm or disadvantage to oneself by one's own actions, as in scoring an own goal.

To search thoroughly in order to find or collect something; to gather something with effort.

To just barely succeed in passing an exam, test, or difficult situation.

To urgently demand or desperately need something or someone, either literally by screaming or figuratively.

To waste time behaving irresponsibly, to be sexually unfaithful, or to tamper with something carelessly.

To remove something by unscrewing it; also used as a rude way to tell someone to go away.

To treat someone very unfairly or dishonestly, causing them significant harm or disadvantage.

To make a serious mistake or ruin something; also to crumple paper or contort a face; informally, to cause someone psychological damage.

To interfere with, tamper with, or deliberately confuse or harm someone or something.

To search for or beg for something in a determined or desperate way, especially from people lower in a hierarchy

To knock down, kill, or eliminate many people or things in a swift, sweeping manner

To close an area or place completely, preventing access or escape

To go to a station, airport, or other departure point to say goodbye to someone who is leaving; also, to defeat or get rid of a threat.

To recognise that someone or something is not genuine; or to continue with something until it is finished.

To sell an asset that someone else was depending on or had an interest in, leaving them without recourse — typically without warning or cons

To begin doing something with determination, or to attack someone physically.

To cause someone to oppose something, to offset one thing against another (financial), or to consider one thing in contrast to another.

To delay progress or development, or to cost someone a specified amount of money.

For something unpleasant or difficult to begin and become established.

To begin a journey, to cause something to activate or explode, or to cause a reaction in someone or something.

To attack someone suddenly, or to cause an animal or person to attack someone.

To direct someone or something towards a target, or a variant of 'set on' (to attack).

To begin doing something with energy and determination, or to start arguing or fighting.

To attack someone suddenly and violently, often as a group.

To unfold or spread something by shaking it, or to develop or resolve in a particular way after a period of uncertainty.

An archaic or very rare expression meaning to gather or obtain something, often through sharp or cunning means.

To transfer responsibility, blame, or a burden onto someone else; to get rid of an obligation by passing it to another.

(Vulgar) To treat someone with extreme disrespect, contempt, or cruelty; to behave very badly toward someone.

(Vulgar) To suddenly lose one's nerve and back out of something due to fear or cowardice.

(Vulgar, rare) To make a mess of something; to ruin or spoil something badly.

(Vulgar) The more formal-sounding variant of 'shit on'; to treat someone with extreme contempt, cruelty, or disrespect.

A vulgar expression meaning to deceive, disrespect, or treat someone poorly

To fire back at an attacker, or to reply quickly and sharply

To bring down an aircraft with gunfire, or to decisively reject an idea or proposal

To settle a dispute or competition by gunfire or by an intense decisive contest

To support or strengthen something that is weak, failing, or under threat

A non-standard or regional variant of 'short out', meaning to fail due to an electrical short circuit

To fail suddenly due to an electrical short circuit

To silence or prevent someone from speaking by shouting louder or more persistently than them

To push or handle someone or something roughly and without care; to treat a person in a bullying or dismissive way

To treat someone in a bullying or disrespectful way, or to push them roughly

To force a final confrontation or, in card games, to reveal one's hand.

To treat something as unimportant and not let it affect you; to dismiss criticism, a problem, or an injury without concern.

To remove or discard something quickly, like a shell, covering, or unwanted obligation.

To move away in a slow, reluctant manner; to escape from or transfer a duty or problem onto someone else; also used in the famous phrase 'sh

To isolate a person or thing by keeping them in a closed or separate place, away from others.

To confine a person or animal inside a space by closing it; also used as an adjective for someone housebound.

To be free of or rid of someone or something unwanted — a dialectal or very informal expression.

To prevent someone from entering or being included; to block something from one's mind; in sport, to prevent the opposition from scoring.

To stop talking, or to cause someone/something to stop making noise.

To join or support the opposition against a particular person or group in a conflict or dispute.

To support or agree with a particular person or group in a disagreement or conflict.

To become calmer and less angry or excited after a period of heightened emotion.

To gradually increase in heat or intensity; used figuratively for emotions or tensions that are slowly building.

To choose or identify one person or thing from a group for special attention, treatment, or criticism.

to remain passive and do nothing while something happens

to take part in a sit-in protest, remain at home, or join an activity informally

to delay action on something, suppress it, or physically sit on top of it

to delay making a decision until later

to avoid dealing directly with a difficult subject or problem

to deal with something too quickly and without enough attention

To sneak away or escape from a situation, especially to avoid a responsibility.

To leave a place or situation quietly and without permission, often to avoid a duty or obligation.

To go around the edge of something, or to avoid addressing a topic directly.

To criticize or say rude, unkind things about someone or something, usually behind their back.

To put something down with great force and noise, usually expressing anger or strong emotion.

To leave a place angrily, slamming the door behind you.

To hit someone or something repeatedly with open-handed blows; to treat someone roughly or without respect.

To reject or rebuke someone or their idea firmly and dismissively, often by someone in authority.

To hit a person repeatedly with open-handed blows, or to treat someone roughly and abusively.

To avoid a responsibility or commitment in a sneaky, dishonest, or disgraceful way; to behave in a contemptible or morally repulsive manner.

To throw, move, or use something carelessly or recklessly in all directions.

To quit, give up, or abandon a job, activity, or plan, especially impulsively.

To throw something away or to forcibly remove someone from a place.

To return to a previous place, state, or habit quietly or without being noticed, often undesirably.

To pass without being noticed, caught, or taken advantage of — said of time, chances, mistakes, or people.

To give something to someone secretly or discreetly

To deceive someone or get something past their notice or defenses

To move past someone or something without being noticed or stopped

To pass through a barrier, system, or set of controls without being caught or stopped

To make a small, careless mistake

To engage in a prolonged, hard-fought physical or figurative contest or argument

To forcefully hit or strike something out, or to produce something with great effort

To hit someone repeatedly, or to treat someone in a rough or domineering way.

To forcefully rebuke, defeat, or physically knock someone down.

To hit something out of a place or out of someone's hands with a sharp blow.

To hit or crash into something, causing damage; or to hit someone repeatedly.

To make a rude, sarcastic, or disrespectful remark, especially to someone in authority.

To destroy or force open something by hitting it very hard.

To damage or destroy something completely by hitting or crashing.

To force a person or animal out of hiding by filling their shelter with smoke, or figuratively to expose someone who is hiding the truth.

To remove or eliminate something unpleasant, such as difficulties, wrinkles, or worries, making it disappear.

To remove wrinkles or unevenness from a surface, or to resolve minor difficulties to make something run more easily.

To make a problem, disagreement, or awkward situation seem less serious, often through tactful behaviour.

To try to bite someone or something with a quick movement; or to speak to someone irritably and sharply.

To become or cause something to become hopelessly tangled, blocked, or chaotically disrupted.

To investigate or search in an area, especially looking for opportunities, problems, or secret information.

To discover or detect something hidden, using skill, instinct, or investigation.

To inform on someone to a person in authority, especially by revealing their wrongdoing.

To look through someone's private things or a private place in a secretive and intrusive way.

To overwhelm someone with so much work, information, or requests that they cannot cope.

To extinguish a flame or, figuratively, to abruptly end or destroy something.

To hit someone or something hard, or to tackle a task with great energy and force.

To do something in an impressively forceful, powerful, or effective way, often to an audience or opponent.

A rude British English expression telling someone to go away or expressing dismissal.

To make someone more receptive, agreeable, or emotionally open; or to weaken resistance before a main attack or negotiation.

To organise, resolve, or deal with a problem, situation, or collection of items.

To express your opinions loudly, forcefully, or at length, especially when complaining or criticising.

To cause something to begin suddenly, especially a conflict, controversy, or chain of events.

to behave in a wild, uncontrolled, or panicked way

to behave in a wild, frantic, or uncontrolled way

to express your opinions publicly and bravely, especially about something wrong

to spread beyond the original limit or area into another one

to become increasingly out of control in a worsening pattern

To break or fragment into many sharp or small pieces

To separate or become detached from a larger group, organization, or object

To end a romantic relationship, or to divide a group into smaller parts

A vulgar British slang term used to tell someone to go away, or referring to a sexual act

To stop functioning or come to an end in an irregular, struggling way

To turn to face someone, especially in a confrontational or challenging way

To prepare to fight, compete against, or confront someone directly

To adopt a fighting stance, to settle a bill or debt, or to confront a challenge bravely

To fire a shot from a gun by carefully squeezing the trigger

To force liquid or substance out by pressing, or to gradually force someone or something out of a position

A very rare regional or dialectal expression meaning to panic, become agitated, or lose composure

To watch a place secretly for a period of time, or to establish and defend a position or claim

To delay or postpone something, especially a threat, creditor, or difficult situation, by making excuses or using diversionary tactics

To stop making progress or functioning, especially suddenly or after initial momentum

To completely eliminate something harmful or unwanted through decisive action

To move away from something or to distance oneself mentally in order to get a better view or perspective.

To act as a barrier or obstacle between a person and something they want or need.

To withdraw from a position of readiness, conflict, or authority.

To represent or symbolize something, to tolerate behavior, or to be a candidate in an election.

An archaic or nautical warning to move away from a place of danger, especially from something about to fall.

To keep at a distance from someone or something, or to result in a deadlock between opposing forces.

To be based on or founded upon something, or to insist on something as a matter of principle.

To stand very close to someone in a supervisory or threatening way, or to postpone a matter.

A military command to take up defensive positions and be fully alert, typically at dawn or dusk.

To be united in purpose, opinion, or action, especially during a challenge.

To rise to a vertical position, to withstand scrutiny, or to fail to meet someone as planned.

To oppose or resist something harmful, unjust, or wrong.

To defend or support a person, principle, or belief, especially when they are being criticized or attacked.

To confront someone who has power or authority over you without backing down, or to remain undamaged under difficult conditions.

A formal or archaic variant of 'stand on', meaning to be based on a principle or to insist on one's rights.

To show solidarity with or support for a person, group, or cause.

To look at someone with a fixed, intense gaze until they look away or back down, or to face a threat with bravery.

To begin criticizing, nagging, or reprimanding someone, or to begin working on something