Phrasal verbs are essential components of English fluency, combining a verb with a preposition or adverb to create expressions with meanings that often differ significantly from the original verb.
This comprehensive guide focuses on phrasal verbs containing “down,” which typically convey ideas of reduction, decrease, movement to a lower position, or recording. Each phrasal verb is presented with clear definitions and practical example sentences to help you master these common expressions.
1-10: Reduction and decrease
Bring down:
To reduce or lower; to cause to fall.
“The new policy brought down inflation rates.”
“The scandal brought down the government.”
Calm down:
To become less excited or agitated.
“Take a deep breath and calm down.”
“The teacher tried to calm down the excited children.”
Cool down:
To become less hot; to become less angry.
“Let the soup cool down before eating it.”
“He needed time to cool down after the argument.”
Cut down:
To reduce in amount or size; to fell trees.
“We need to cut down our expenses.”
“They cut down several trees to clear the land.”
Die down:
To become gradually less intense.
“The noise died down after midnight.”
“The controversy eventually died down.”
Dumb down:
To simplify or make less intellectually demanding.
“Critics claimed the textbook was dumbed down too much.”
“Don’t dumb down the presentation for this audience.”
Knock down:
To reduce in price; to demolish; to cause to fall.
“The seller knocked down the price by 20%.”
“The wind knocked down several power lines.”
Scale down:
To reduce the size, amount, or extent.
“The company scaled down its operations during the recession.”
“We need to scale down our plans to fit the budget.”
Simmer down:
To become calmer.
“Just simmer down and let’s discuss this rationally.”
“The crowd simmered down when security arrived.”
Slow down:
To reduce speed.
“You should slow down when driving in bad weather.”
“The economy has slowed down in recent months.”
11-20: Movement and position
Bend down:
To move the body downward by bending.
“She bent down to pick up the dropped keys.”
“You’ll need to bend down to see under the table.”
Climb down:
To descend by climbing.
“The firefighter climbed down the ladder.”
“After reaching the summit, we climbed down carefully.”
Come down:
To descend; to fall; to visit.
“She came down the stairs quickly.”
“Rain came down heavily all night.”
“They’re coming down to visit this weekend.”
Get down:
To descend; to depress emotionally.
“Get down from that ladder before you fall.”
“Bad news can really get me down.”
Go down:
To descend; to decrease; to be remembered.
“The sun went down behind the mountains.”
“Prices have gone down this month.”
“This event will go down in history.”
Hunker down:
To take shelter; to prepare for a difficult period.
“We hunkered down during the storm.”
“The company is hunkering down to survive the recession.”
Lie down:
To assume a horizontal position.
“I need to lie down for a while; I’m not feeling well.”
“The dog lies down by the fireplace every evening.”
Sit down:
To move to a seated position.
“Please sit down and make yourself comfortable.”
“We sat down to discuss the project.”
Step down:
To resign from a position; to descend.
“The CEO stepped down after the scandal.”
“Step down carefully from the ladder.”
Topple down:
To fall over or collapse.
“The tower toppled down during the earthquake.”
“The Jenga blocks toppled down when I removed the wrong piece.”
21-30: Recording and writing
Jot down
To write quickly or briefly.
“Jot down your ideas before you forget them.”
“She jotted down the phone number on a napkin.”
Mark down
To reduce the price; to note or record.
“The store marked down all winter clothing by 50%.”
“Mark down the date of the meeting in your calendar.”
Note down
To write a brief record of.
“Note down the main points from the lecture.”
“I need to note down this information for future reference.”
Put down
To write; to criticize; to place on a surface.
“Put down your thoughts on paper.”
“Put down that vase before you break it.”
Set down
To put in writing; to place something down.
“He set down his account of the events.”
“Set down your luggage and take a rest.”
Take down
To write or record; to remove from a higher position.
“Take down these instructions carefully.”
“We took down the holiday decorations yesterday.”
Write down
To record in writing.
“Write down my address so you don’t forget it.”
“The student wrote down every word the professor said.”
Lay down
To establish or record formally.
“The constitution lays down the basic rights of citizens.”
“Company policy lays down strict guidelines for conduct.”
Pin down
To define precisely; to force someone to make a decision.
“I couldn’t pin down exactly what went wrong.”
“The reporter tried to pin down the politician on his position.”
Track down
To find through searching or investigation.
“The detective tracked down the missing witness.”
“It took months to track down all the relevant documents.”
31-40: Control and restriction
Bear down
To apply pressure or concentrate effort.
“The team bore down and scored in the final minutes.”
“I need to bear down and finish this project tonight.”
Boil down
To reduce to essential elements; to simplify.
“The 300-page report boils down to three main recommendations.”
“All these complaints boil down to poor communication.”
Clamp down
To impose strict controls.
“The government clamped down on tax evasion.”
“The school clamped down on cell phone use in classrooms.”
Crack down
To take severe measures against.
“Police cracked down on drunk driving during the holidays.”
“The principal cracked down on tardiness.”
Hold down
To keep in place; to maintain control; to restrict.
“Hold down the paper while I tape it.”
“She managed to hold down two jobs while studying.”
Keep down
To maintain at a low level; to suppress.
“We need to keep down the noise during the exam.”
“The government tried to keep down inflation.”
Lock down
To secure or restrict access.
“The prison was locked down after the fight.”
“The school locks down the building after hours.”
Nail down
To define or establish firmly.
“We need to nail down the details of the contract.”
“They’ve nailed down a time for the meeting.”
Tie down
To secure firmly; to restrict movement or options.
“Tie down the tarp so it doesn’t blow away.”
“Don’t let a relationship tie you down too early in life.”
Weigh down
To burden or impede.
“He was weighed down with responsibilities.”
“The backpack weighed me down on the hike.”
41-50: Defeat and destruction
Beat down
To defeat or overwhelm; to negotiate a lower price.
“The sun beat down on us all day.”
“He beat down the seller until he got a better price.”
Break down
To stop functioning; to decompose; to analyze in detail.
“My car broke down on the highway.”
“Let’s break down this problem into smaller parts.”
Burn down
To destroy by fire.
“The abandoned house burned down last night.”
“Lightning struck the barn and burned it down.”
Chop down
To fell with an axe or similar tool.
“They chopped down the dead tree.”
“Chopping down rainforests contributes to climate change.”
Knock down
To demolish; to cause to fall; to reduce in price.
“They’re going to knock down that old building.”
“The storm knocked down several trees.”
“I managed to knock down the price by 20%.”
Mow down
To cut down with a mowing machine; to strike down in large numbers.
“He mowed down the tall grass.”
“The gunfire mowed down many soldiers.”
Pull down
To demolish; to reduce or degrade.
“They pulled down the old theater.”
“His constant criticism pulled down her self-confidence.”
Run down
To collide with and knock over; to criticize; to exhaust.
“The car ran down a fire hydrant.”
“Don’t run down your colleagues behind their backs.”
“The battery has run down completely.”
Shoot down
To cause to fall by shooting; to reject forcefully.
“The air defense system shot down the drone.”
“The board shot down his proposal immediately.”
Tear down
To demolish.
“They tore down the old stadium.”
“The critic tore down the new play.”
51-60: Settling and calming
Buckle down
To apply oneself with determination.
“It’s time to buckle down and study for finals.”
“We need to buckle down if we want to meet this deadline.”
Calm down
To become less agitated or excited.
“Take a deep breath and calm down.”
“The teacher calmed down the excited children.”
Hunker down
To take shelter; to settle in for a period of time.
“We hunkered down during the snowstorm.”
“The family hunkered down to watch movies all weekend.”
Pipe down
To become quiet or less noisy.
“Pipe down! I’m trying to concentrate.”
“The children finally piped down after the excitement wore off.”
Quiet down
To become less noisy.
“The class quieted down when the principal entered.”
“The crowd quieted down as the speaker approached the podium.”
Settle down
To become calmer; to establish a stable life.
“The children took a while to settle down after the party.”
“They settled down in a small town after years of traveling.”
Simmer down
To become calmer.
“Simmer down and let’s discuss this rationally.”
“It took him a few minutes to simmer down after the argument.”
Tone down
To make less extreme, intense, or offensive.
“You need to tone down your language in professional settings.”
“The designer toned down the bright colors in the final version.”
Wind down
To relax after activity; to gradually come to an end.
“The party wound down around midnight.
“I like to wind down with a book before bed.”
Die down
To become gradually less intense.
“The excitement died down after a few days.”
“Wait for the flames to die down before adding more wood.”
61-70: Consumption and completion
Chow down
To eat heartily (informal).
“The hungry hikers chowed down on their packed lunch.”
“Let’s chow down before the movie starts.”
Drink down
To consume a beverage completely.
“He drank down the entire glass of water in one go.”
“Drink down your medicine quickly.”
Eat down
To reduce food supplies by eating; to consume completely.
“We need to eat down the refrigerator before vacation.”
“The locusts ate down the entire crop.”
Gulp down
To swallow hastily or in large amounts.
“She gulped down her coffee and rushed to work.”
“Don’t gulp down your food—eat slowly.”
Melt down
To liquefy by heating; to collapse in distress.
“The ice cream melted down in the hot sun.”
“The child melted down when told he couldn’t have the toy.”
Polish down
To consume entirely.
“The hungry teenagers polished down the entire pizza.”
“He polished down his drink in seconds.”
Run down
To exhaust or deplete.
“The battery has run down completely.”
“Don’t run down your energy reserves before the race.”
Use down
To consume or utilize completely.
“We used down all our supplies during the project.”
“The painters used down all the blue paint first.”
Wash down
To swallow food with drink; to clean by applying water.
“Wash down the pills with plenty of water.”
“We washed down the patio after the party.”
Wear down
To reduce by friction or stress; to exhaust.
“My shoes are wearing down quickly on these rough roads.”
“The constant complaints wore down his patience.”
71-80: Communication and interaction
Call down
To reprimand; to request to come downstairs.
“The teacher called him down for disrupting class.”
“Mom called down the children for dinner.”
Face down
To confront and defeat.
“She faced down her critics with confidence.”
“The company faced down the hostile takeover attempt.”
Hand down
To transmit to subsequent generations; to give a ruling.
“Traditional recipes are handed down from generation to generation.”
“The judge handed down a harsh sentence.”
Pass down
To transmit to a younger generation.
“This watch was passed down from my grandfather.”
“Stories are passed down through oral tradition.”
Put down
To criticize harshly; to suppress; to stop holding.
“Don’t put down other people’s ideas.”
“The military put down the rebellion.”
“Put down that hot pan before you burn yourself.”
Read down
To read through from top to bottom.
“Read down the list and check off your name.”
“The teacher asked us to read down the column of numbers.”
Shout down
To silence by shouting louder.
“Protesters shouted down the speaker.”
“The chairman was shouted down at the meeting.”
Talk down
To speak condescendingly; to persuade to a calmer state.
“Don’t talk down to your colleagues.”
“The negotiator talked down the hostage-taker.”
Turn down
To refuse or reject; to reduce volume or intensity.
“She turned down the job offer.”
“Please turn down the music; it’s too loud.”
Write down
To record in writing.
“Write down my number so you don’t forget it.”
“The journalist wrote down every detail of the interview.”
81-90: Fixation and determination
Anchor down
To secure firmly in place.
“Anchor down the tent before the wind picks up.”
“Make sure to anchor down the furniture on the deck.”
Bog down
To impede progress.
“The project got bogged down in bureaucratic details.”
“Don’t bog down the meeting with unnecessary questions.”
Clamp down
To suppress or restrict.
“The government clamped down on public protests.”
“Parents clamped down on their children’s screen time.”
Knuckle down
To apply oneself diligently.
“It’s time to knuckle down and finish this project.”
“The student finally knuckled down to study for exams.”
Narrow down
To reduce options or possibilities.
“We’ve narrowed down the candidates to three finalists.”
“Let’s narrow down our vacation options.”
Nail down
To finalize or determine precisely.
“We need to nail down the details of the agreement.”
“Have you nailed down a date for the event?”
Pin down
To define precisely; to force a commitment.
“I can’t pin down exactly what’s wrong with the design.”
“The reporter tried to pin down the politician on her position.”
Tie down
To secure firmly; to restrict.
“Tie down the tarp before the storm hits.”
“Don’t let yourself get tied down to one option.”
Wear down
To reduce resistance through persistence.
“She wore down her parents until they agreed to the trip.”
“The persistent salesman wore down my objections.”
Zero down
To focus precisely on.
“The investigators zeroed down on the main suspect.”
“We need to zero down on the cause of the problem.”
91-100: Miscellaneous
Back down
To withdraw from a position or argument.
“The company backed down after public criticism.”
“He refused to back down despite the pressure.”
Count down
To count backward to zero.
“We counted down to midnight on New Year’s Eve.”
“The launch sequence begins with a countdown from ten.”
Cut down
To reduce; to fell a tree.
“I’m trying to cut down on sugar.”
“They cut down the old oak tree.”
Drive down
To force to a lower level; to travel south.
“Competition drove down prices.”
“We’re driving down to Florida for vacation.”
Fall down
To collapse to the ground; to fail.
“The child fell down and scraped his knee.”
“The plan fell down due to lack of funding.”
Let down
To disappoint; to lower something.
“I don’t want to let down the team.”
“Let down your hair from the ponytail.”
Look down
To direct one’s gaze downward; to regard with contempt.
“Don’t look down when walking on heights.”
“She looks down on people who didn’t go to college.”
Melt down
To undergo a nuclear reactor accident; to have an emotional collapse.
“The reactor melted down after the cooling system failed.”
“The toddler melted down in the grocery store.”
Turn down
To reject; to decrease volume or temperature.
“She turned down the promotion.”
“Turn down the heat; it’s too warm in here.”
Water down
To dilute; to make less effective or powerful.
“Don’t water down my drink with too much ice.”
“The final report was watered down to avoid controversy.”
Phrasal verbs with “down” are frequently used in English to express concepts related to reduction, decrease, recording, and movement to a lower position. Mastering these expressions will significantly enhance your English fluency and comprehension. Remember that many phrasal verbs have multiple meanings depending on context, so pay attention to how they’re used in different situations. Regular practice in your everyday conversations will help you use these phrasal verbs naturally and confidently.
