Health & Wellness

Phrasal verbs for health situations

Introduction

Health vocabulary goes far beyond medical terms. We "come down with" colds, "get over" illnesses, "pass out" from exhaustion, and "work out" to stay fit. Phrasal verbs capture the physical experiences of daily life.

This chapter explores health-related phrasal verbs: getting sick, recovering, exercising, and maintaining wellbeing.

Themes

All Phrasal Verbs in This Chapter (93)

• come down with To become ill with something
• get over To recover from an illness
• pass out To lose consciousness
• work out To exercise
• throw up To vomit
• burn out To become exhausted from overwork
• come around To regain consciousness
• fight off To resist an illness
• wear off To gradually diminish in effect
• pull through To survive a serious illness or difficulty
• break out To develop spots or rash suddenly
• flare up When a condition or problem suddenly becomes worse
• swell up To become swollen
• seize up When muscles or joints become stiff and painful
• keel over To collapse suddenly
• warm up To prepare for exercise; to become friendlier
• black out To lose consciousness temporarily
• ease off To become less intense; to relax effort
• build up To increase strength gradually
• wind down To relax after activity
• come round To regain consciousness
• shake off To recover from illness; to escape
• come to To regain consciousness
• lay up To be confined to bed due to illness
• run down To be exhausted and susceptible to illness
• perk up To feel better after illness
• bring up To vomit
• come out in To develop spots or rash
• go down with To become ill with something
• pick up To catch an illness
• slim down To lose weight
• bulk up To gain muscle mass
• burn off To lose weight through exercise
• come around To regain consciousness
• come over To suddenly feel
• go out To lose consciousness
• feel up to To feel well enough
• get through To endure treatment
• go through To undergo treatment
• pull through To survive serious illness
• pass on To transmit disease
• pass out To lose consciousness
• black out To lose consciousness
• knock out To render unconscious
• spit out To expel from mouth
• choke on To have difficulty swallowing
• break out To develop a rash
• flare up For a condition to worsen
• act up For a body part to cause problems
• play up For a body part to cause problems
• puff up To become swollen
• dry out To become dehydrated
• heat up To develop a fever
• cool down To reduce body temperature
• warm up To prepare muscles
• stretch out To extend muscles
• burn off To lose through exercise
• tone up To improve muscle definition
• wear down To weaken gradually
• tire out To exhaust
• calm down To become calmer
• stress out To cause stress
• break down To collapse emotionally
• burn out To become exhausted
• run down To become weak
• wear out To exhaust completely
• wake up To become conscious
• drop off To fall asleep
• drift off To fall asleep gradually
• sleep in To sleep later than usual
• stay up To remain awake
• sit up To stay awake late
• check in To register at hospital
• check out To leave hospital
• patch up To treat injuries
• bandage up To apply bandages
• stitch up To close a wound
• clean up To sterilize a wound
• operate on To perform surgery
• cut out To surgically remove
• put under To anaesthetize
• bring round To revive
• fight off To resist infection
• shake off To recover from
• kick in For medication to take effect
• wear off For medication to stop working
• ease off To reduce in intensity
• clear up To heal completely
• heal up To recover completely
• sober up To become sober
• fight off To resist an illness successfully
• come round To regain consciousness
• lay up To be confined due to illness or injury