10 Essential Family Phrasal Verbs to Sound Like a Native English Speaker

Want to talk about your family like a native English speaker?
These 10 phrasal verbs are used every day by native speakers but many learners don’t know them.
Let’s learn them with simple definitions + examples! ✅

1️⃣ Bring up

Meaning: Teach children how to behave / raise a child
Example: Dan and Sheila have brought up their children to be kind to animals.

2️⃣ Get on (with)

Meaning: Have a good relationship with someone
Example: Liam gets on very well with his elder sister. They’re always laughing together.

3️⃣ Live with

Meaning: Share the same house
Example: Colin lives with his son in a house at the edge of town.

4️⃣ Grow out of

Meaning: Lose interest in something as you get older
Example: Jenny’s grown out of her old toys. She prefers video games now.

5️⃣ Grow up

Meaning: Develop from a child to an adult
Example: Sam wants to be a pilot when he grows up.

6️⃣ Name after

Meaning: Give someone the same name as a family member or relative
Example: Albert’s parents named him after his great-grandfather.

7️⃣ Settle down

Meaning: Live in one place / start a stable life
Example: After traveling for a few years, Bill settled down next to his parents.

8️⃣ Look after

Meaning: Care for someone / take responsibility for them
Example: My mother looks after my children while I’m at work.

9️⃣ Take after

Meaning: Have similar characteristics as a family member
Example: Jasmine takes after her mother. They’re very similar.

🔟 Pull together

Meaning: Work as a group to help during a difficult situation
Example: My family pulled together when my father was unwell.

Bonus! Tell apart

Meaning: Recognize the difference between two similar people or things
Example: Will and Joe are identical twins. It’s almost impossible to tell them apart.

Bonus! Wait up

Meaning: Stay awake until someone gets home
Example: Carlo waits up until his children get home.