Emotions & Feelings

Phrasal verbs for expressing emotional states

Introduction

Emotions are at the heart of human experience, and phrasal verbs offer powerful ways to describe them. When someone "breaks down" in tears or finally "cheers up," these two-word combinations capture emotional transitions that single words simply cannot express.

This chapter explores phrasal verbs for the full spectrum of feelings—from the depths of despair to the heights of joy. You'll learn how to describe emotional buildup, release, and recovery using the natural patterns of native speakers.

Themes

All Phrasal Verbs in This Chapter (66)

• break down To lose emotional control and start crying
• cheer up To become happier or make someone happier
• calm down To become less agitated or to make someone less upset
• open up To share feelings or personal information
• bottle up To suppress emotions and not express them
• lash out To suddenly attack verbally or physically
• lighten up To become less serious or stop being so uptight
• freak out To panic or become extremely upset or excited
• wind up To make someone angry or annoyed (British)
• snap out of To suddenly stop being in a bad mood or daze
• build up To gradually increase in intensity (of emotions)
• let down To disappoint someone
• get over To recover from an emotional experience
• blow up To suddenly become very angry
• chill out To relax and calm down
• tear up To begin to cry, eyes filling with tears
• perk up To become more cheerful or lively
• work up To gradually develop a strong emotion
• crack up To laugh uncontrollably
• choke up To become too emotional to speak
• light up To become visibly happy or excited
• take out on To direct anger at someone unfairly
• brighten up To become happier; to make more cheerful
• well up To rise to the surface (tears or emotions)
• warm to To begin to like someone or something
• put off To cause someone to dislike something
• key up To make nervous or excited
• dwell on To think about something too much
• melt down To lose emotional control completely
• look forward to To anticipate with pleasure
• burst out To suddenly express emotion
• flip out To suddenly become very angry or upset
• cheer on To encourage with shouts
• fire up To excite or motivate
• stir up To provoke emotions or trouble
• mellow out To become calm
• simmer down To calm from anger
• get down To depress
• get to To affect emotionally
• weigh down To burden emotionally
• cry out To express pain vocally
• pour out To express fully
• keep in To not express
• psych up To prepare mentally
• pump up To excite
• fly off To become angry suddenly
• go off To become angry
• snap at To speak angrily
• take out To release frustration
• cool off To calm down after anger
• shake off To get rid of a feeling
• laugh off To dismiss with humour
• put on To fake emotion
• drag down To make depressed
• beat down To demoralize
• cut up To upset deeply
• eat up To consume with emotion
• eat away To erode emotionally
• gnaw at To worry persistently
• prey on To cause ongoing worry
• hang over To weigh on mind
• brood over To dwell unhappily
• mope around To be depressed
• pine for To long for
• ache for To yearn for
• long for To desire deeply